EM ASIA FX-Asian currencies fall as rising U.S. bond yields support the dollar

* Dollar strength weighs on emerging Asian units

* Indian rupee inches lower after Monday's inflation data

* Rupiah's losses widen slightly on April trade deficit

* Philippine peso falls to near 12-year low

(Adds text, updates prices)

By Nikhil Nainan

May 15 (Reuters) - Asian currencies weakened on Tuesday with

the South Korean won and Indonesian rupiah falling the most, as

easing trade tensions helped shore up the dollar and push up

U.S. bond yields.

The dollar index against a basket of six major

currencies edged up 0.2 percent to 92.792 at 0502 GMT.

The U.S. 10-year bond yield had inched higher on Monday, as

optimism over President Donald Trump's pledge to aid China's ZTE

Corp helped assuage U.S.-China trade frictions.

"It appears that momentum for earnest trade negotiations has

been unlocked and we think this could be a positive for global

market sentiment and the U.S. dollar for now," said Mizuho Bank

in a note.

Indonesia's rupiah weakened to 14,030 a dollar. Its

loss for the day increased slightly after Southeast Asia's

largest economy reported that in April it had its biggest trade

deficit in four years.

The data showed a trade deficit of $1.62 billion in April

which conflicted with most estimates, including a Reuters poll,

and was a departure from a $1.12 billion surplus in March.

The rupiah remains perched around two-and-a-half-year lows.

Thailand's baht fell 0.4 percent. The central bank

will leave interest rates at a near record low on Wednesday, a

Reuters poll showed.

The Philippine peso fell 0.4 percent to 52.677 to the

dollar, its lowest level in nearly 12 years.

The South Korean won declined 0.7 percent, ahead

of revised April trade data later in the day.

CHINESE YUAN

The Chinese yuan slipped to 6.349 a dollar,

following a slew of economic data, which showed China's

industrial output grew 7 percent in April, quicker than

expected, while retail sales missed expectations.

Moody's maintained a cautionary tone on the recent trade

discussion between the world's two largest economics, saying

China is "unlikely to meet U.S. demands on bilateral trade".

Caution was echoed by the U.S. Ambassador to China Terry

Branstad, who says the countries are still "very far apart" on

resolving trade frictions.

INDIA'S RUPEE

The Indian rupee inched down to its lowest in over

three months, following data that showed annual retail and

wholesale inflation accelerated in April, with many economists

expecting a more hawkish central bank at June's policy meeting.

Annual retail inflation accelerated in April to 4.58

percent, after easing for three straight months, mainly driven

by faster increases in food and fuel prices.

The biggest risk Asia's third-largest economy faces is

rising crude oil prices. India meets 80 percent of its oil needs

from imports.

An increase in oil prices of $10 a barrel could quicken

inflation by about 1 percentage point and reduce economic growth

by 0.2 to 0.3 percentage points, a senior finance ministry

official told Reuters.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Change on the day at 0502 GMT

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 109.910 109.65 -0.24

Sing dlr 1.338 1.3359 -0.15

Taiwan dlr 29.827 29.742 -0.28

Korean won 1075.500 1068 -0.70

Baht 31.940 31.82 -0.38

Peso 52.677 52.451 -0.43

Rupiah 14030.000 13965 -0.46

Rupee 67.675 67.51 -0.24

Ringgit 3.951 3.948 -0.08

Yuan 6.349 6.3369 -0.19

Change so far in 2018

Currency Latest bid End 2017 Pct Move

Japan yen 109.910 112.67 +2.51

Sing dlr 1.338 1.3373 -0.04

Taiwan dlr 29.827 29.848 +0.07

Korean won 1075.500 1070.50 -0.46

Baht 31.940 32.58 +2.00

Peso 52.677 49.977 -5.13

Rupiah 14030.000 13565 -3.31

Rupee 67.675 63.87 -5.62

Ringgit 3.951 4.0440 +2.35

Yuan 6.349 6.5069 +2.49

(Reporting by Nikhil Kurian Nainan in Bengaluru; Editing by

Richard Borsuk)