EM ASIA FX-Most Asian currencies falter as Russian, Turkish concerns whack sentiment

(Adds text, updates prices)

By Devika Syamnath

Aug 10 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies retreated against

the dollar on Friday, as slides in the Russian rouble and

Turkish lira combined with escalating global trade tensions to

knock sentiment toward emerging market assets.

Turkey's lira hit a new record low against the U.S. dollar

in early trade on Friday, as concerns over a widening rift with

the United States persisted after a Turkish delegation returned

from talks in Washington with no apparent solutions to the

crisis.

Earlier, the rouble slid to its lowest level since late 2016

after Washington said it would impose fresh sanctions because it

had determined that Moscow had used a nerve agent against a

former Russian agent and his daughter in Britain, which the

Kremlin denies.

The combined impact of these events spiked risk aversion,

hitting Asian stock and currency markets.

The Korean won weakened 0.8 percent, its worst

session in over four weeks. India's rupee also shrunk

0.4 percent on the day and 0.4 percent this week.

The Philippine peso broke a three-week rally to fall

0.3 percent this week and was 0.2 percent lower for the day.

This was despite its central bank making its biggest rate

hike in 10 years on Thursday and leaving the door open for

further policy tightening to fight high inflation despite

economic growth losing steam.

China's yuan fell 0.5 percent. It has weakened

4.8 percent to date.

"We suspect that the PBOC (People's Bank of China) will not

allow the renminbi to weaken a lot further. But further slowdown

in China's economy that we are forecasting, and any escalation

of the U.S.-China trade war, is still likely to put a bit more

downward pressure on the currencies of other EM Asian

economies," said Capital Economics in a note.

China's central bank took steps earlier this month to rein

in sharp declines in the yuan, raising reserve requirements for

forex settlements to 20 percent but outlook still remains dour

due to the ongoing retaliatory tariff war between U.S. and

China.

SINGAPORE DOLLAR

The city-state's currency declined for its second

week in a row and fell 0.2 percent this week.

A DBS bank note said the rise of alternatives to Singapore

dollar (SGD) deposits with domestic banks will drive short-term

Singapore dollar rates higher in the coming months.

"In the coming weeks, the upcoming launch of the SGD-based

IG (investment-grade) corporate bond ETF (exchange-traded fund)

would be a marker for the state of SGD bond demand. With a

higher yield and relatively short duration, this product may

entice depositors to switch over," the note said.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar at 0525 GMT.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 110.920 111.07 +0.14

Sing dlr 1.371 1.3676 -0.21

Taiwan dlr 30.655 30.626 -0.09

Korean won 1126.500 1117.2 -0.83

Baht 33.270 33.16 -0.33

Peso 53.157 53.006 -0.28

Rupiah 14435.000 14405 -0.21

Rupee 68.948 68.68 -0.40

Ringgit 4.079 4.074 -0.12

Yuan 6.854 6.8180 -0.52

Change so far in 2018

Currency Latest bid End 2017 Pct Move

Japan yen 110.920 112.67 +1.58

Sing dlr 1.371 1.3373 -2.42

Taiwan dlr 30.655 29.848 -2.63

Korean won 1126.500 1070.50 -4.97

Baht 33.270 32.58 -2.07

Peso 53.157 49.977 -5.98

Rupiah 14435.000 13565 -6.03

Rupee 68.948 63.87 -7.36

Ringgit 4.079 4.0440 -0.86

Yuan 6.854 6.5069 -5.06

(Reporting by Devika Syamnath in Bengaluru; Editing by Sam

Holmes)