EM ASIA FX-Most Asian currencies barely move; Thai baht weakens most

(Corrects first paragraph to show U.S. dollar index hit an

18-month high, not 19-month peak)

* Fed monetary policy decision due this week

* Rupiah slips as Nov trade deficit is widest since 2013

* Yuan strengthens, Xi message to economic conference

awaited

By Niyati Shetty

Dec 17 (Reuters) - Most emerging Asian currencies moved only

marginally on Monday, as the dollar held near a 18-month high

ahead of an expected U.S. Federal Reserve rate hike this week.

At 0508 GMT, no currency had changed for than about 0.3

percent against the dollar. Among decliners, the biggest was the

Thai baht, while the largest gainer was the Indian

rupee, which strengthened as oil prices dipped.

The U.S. dollar strengthened on Monday as concerns of a

global economic slowdown, heightened by weak economic data from

China and Europe, trimmed appetites for riskier assets such as

emerging Asian currencies.

Meanwhile, investors are cautious about the trajectory of

U.S. monetary policy as markets await the Fed's interest rate

decision due early Thursday Asia time.

Saktiandi Supaat, head of FX research at Maybank

(Singapore), said in a note to clients on Friday that a Fed hike

"accompanied by a still-hawkish tone in the statement and press

conference could power the USD and weigh on" Asian currencies

other than the yen.

On the other hand, a "dovish hike" could allow Southeast

Asian currencies to recover ahead of the Christmas holidays, he

said.

On Monday, one regional loser was the Indonesian rupiah

, which was down 0.2 percent, part of that on data showing

November's trade deficit was the widest in over five years, as

exports slumped.

The deficit was $2.05 billion, while a Reuters poll had

expected a gap $830 million.

In India, government data on Friday showed the country's

trade gap narrowed from the prior month. Lower oil prices have

helped the world's third-biggest oil importer which buys over 80

percent of its crude oil from overseas.

The Philippine peso and the Singapore dollar

were fractionally stronger against the dollar.

CHINESE YUAN

The yuan on Monday firmed 0.2 percent at 6.898 per dollar,

edging away from the psychologically important benchmark of 7 to

the dollar.

"The yuan was stronger this morning partly on the back of

stronger than expected fixing," said Khoon Goh, head of Asia

research at ANZ Banking Group (Singapore).

Investors awaited President Xi Jinping's speech at a

conference marking the 40th anniversary of China's reform and

opening up on Tuesday. The conferences comes at a time Chinese

business executives and others to call for faster reforms.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar at 0508 GMT.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 113.470 113.37 -0.09

Sing dlr 1.375 1.3766 +0.11

Taiwan dlr 30.866 30.867 +0.00

Korean won 1131.000 1130.8 -0.02

Baht 32.770 32.67 -0.31

Peso 52.950 53.037 +0.16

Rupiah 14610.000 14580 -0.21

Rupee 71.720 71.90 +0.24

Ringgit 4.185 4.183 -0.05

Yuan 6.898 6.9100 +0.17

Change so far in 2018

Currency Latest bid End 2017 Pct Move

Japan yen 113.470 112.67 -0.71

Sing dlr 1.375 1.3373 -2.75

Taiwan dlr 30.866 29.848 -3.30

Korean won 1131.000 1070.50 -5.35

Baht 32.770 32.58 -0.58

Peso 52.950 49.93 -5.70

Rupiah 14610.000 13565 -7.15

Rupee 71.720 63.87 -10.95

Ringgit 4.185 4.0440 -3.37

Yuan 6.898 6.5069 -5.68

(Reporting by Niyati Shetty in Bengaluru; Editing by Richard

Borsuk)