EM ASIA FX-Asian currencies subdued against stronger dollar; yuan edges up

* Philippine peso, Chinese yuan among few gainers

* Sentiment remains subdued ahead of Fed meet

(Adds details, updates prices)

By Ambar Warrick

March 21 (Reuters) - Asian currencies moved in a tight range

against a firmer dollar on Wednesday ahead of a slew of economic

indicators, the foremost being the outcome of a U.S. Federal

Open Market Committee meeting later in the day.

The greenback retained gains against a basket of

currencies as traders look to whether the Fed will indicate

faster monetary tightening this year, while the first rate

increase of 2018 is almost unanimously expected.

A hawkish fed means greater upside potential for the dollar,

which would drive capital flows away from emerging currencies.

"The market is cautious ahead the FOMC meeting today

evening. However we did see some divergence in regional

currencies today, as some rose and some fell," said Qi Gao, FX

strategist at Scotiabank.

"Overnight, U.S. stocks did slightly better than yesterday,

so sentiment might be a bit better today," Gao added.

The Malaysian ringgit and the South Korean won

led declines in Asia.

The Hong Kong dollar hit a 33-year low, falling

towards the lower end of the central bank's trading band.

However, the Chinese yuan inched up.

In Malaysia, inflation for February came in below forecasts.

Easing inflationary pressures have dissuaded the need for

monetary tightening in the near term, as Malaysia's economy has

enjoyed a spell of strength in recent times.

REGIONAL MONETARY POLICY

Investors are now waiting for central bank meetings in

Taiwan, Indonesia, and the Philippines on Thursday for further

trading cues.

Taiwan's central bank is expected to leave its policy rate

steady for the seventh straight quarter, a Reuters poll showed.

The Taiwan dollar was largely flat to the dollar ahead

of the meeting.

The Philippine central bank is also likely to leave its

benchmark rate steady on optimism the country's annual inflation

would ease back to a target range next year.

The Philippine peso, which has taken a large dive

lately over lagging fundamentals in the country, rose slightly

against the dollar.

The Indonesian rupiah edged down versus the dollar.

The country's central bank is expected to keep its benchmark

rate unchanged, a Reuters poll showed.

"I think the Bank Indonesia always said it will guide the

rupiah in line with the nation's fundamentals, so I think they

will maintain their stance, in line with market expectations,"

Gao from Scotiabank added.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar on Wednesday.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Change on the day at 0525 GMT

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 106.450 106.53 +0.08

Sing dlr 1.318 1.3187 +0.08

Taiwan dlr 29.184 29.175 -0.03

Korean won 1071.600 1068.6 -0.28

Baht 31.210 31.17 -0.13

Peso 52.070 52.08 +0.02

Rupiah 13760.000 13745 -0.11

Rupee 65.215 65.19 -0.04

Ringgit 3.923 3.915 -0.20

Yuan 6.332 6.3352 +0.05

Change so far in 2018

Currency Latest bid End 2017 Pct Move

Japan yen 106.450 112.67 +5.84

Sing dlr 1.318 1.3373 +1.50

Taiwan dlr 29.184 29.848 +2.28

Korean won 1071.600 1070.50 -0.10

Baht 31.210 32.58 +4.39

Peso 52.070 49.93 -4.11

Rupiah 13760.000 13565 -1.42

Rupee 65.215 63.87 -2.06

Ringgit 3.923 4.0440 +3.08

Yuan 6.332 6.5069 +2.76

(Reporting by Ambar Warrick in Bengaluru; Editing by Himani

Sarkar)