EM ASIA FX-Most Asian currencies fall on dollar recovery and risk aversion

(Adds text, updates prices)

By Patturaja Murugaboopathy

Feb 20 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies languished on

Tuesday as the dollar rebounded further from a three-year low

hit last week, and subdued risk sentiment kept regional assets

in check.

Against the yen, the dollar traded at 106.75 yen JPY=, up

0.15 percent for the day and bouncing back from its 15-month low

of 105.545 set on Friday.

Ananlysts said the market would be watching out for several

U.S. Federal Reserve officials expected to speak publicly in the

coming week and the Fed's release of its semi-annual monetary

policy report to Congress.

"We believe the dollar could stay relatively supported on

dips against Asia ex-Japan currencies this week into the release

of the report," said Christopher Wong, an FX strategist with

Maybank.

Wong also said there was softer appetite for risk assets on

the day.

The Indian rupee shed more than a quarter percent

on concerns over its widening trade deficit and the recent $1.77

billion Punjab National Bank fraud.

India's trade deficit [INTRD=ECI} in January was the widest

in more than 4-1/2 years as a surge in the country's oil and

coal import bill outweighed a rise in exports, government data

showed last week.

The South Korean won also fell as foreigners

trimmed positions in local equity markets. The KOSPI index

was down nearly 1 percent on the day.

The Indonesian rupiah dropped as rising U.S.

Treasury yields narrowed gap with Indonesian bond yields.

The Thai baht and Singapore dollar also fell

on the day, while the Philippine peso bucked the trend and was

up 0.19 percent.

With more than 4 percent decline this year, the peso is the

worst performer against the dollar in Asia.

Chang Wei Liang, an FX strategist with Mizuho Bank said the

possibile introduction of U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum

imports also undermined regional currencies.

"With the US now considering measures to curb steel and

aluminum imports, we are mindful that the global synchronized

expansion could face a new source of risk," Chang said.

Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he

was considering a range of options, including tariffs and

quotas, to address steel and aluminium imports that he said were

unfairly hurting U.S. producers.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar at 0608 GMT.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Change as of

0608 GMT

Currency Latest Previo Pct

bid us day Move

Japan yen 106.91 106.59 -0.30

0

Sing dlr 1.316 1.3134 -0.22

Taiwan dlr* 29.342 29.358 +0.05

Korean won 1072.2 1067.6 -0.43

00

Baht 31.470 31.38 -0.29

Peso 52.260 52.34 +0.15

Rupiah 13590. 13558 -0.24

000

Rupee 64.520 64.21 -0.48

Ringgit 3.894 3.889 -0.13

Yuan* 6.345 6.3400 -0.08

*Closed for market

holiday

Change so far in

2018

Currency Latest End Pct

bid 2017 Move

Japan yen 106.91 112.67 +5.39

0

Sing dlr 1.316 1.3373 +1.60

Taiwan dlr 29.342 29.848 +1.72

Korean won 1072.2 1070.5 -0.16

00 0

Baht 31.470 32.58 +3.53

Peso 52.260 49.93 -4.46

Rupiah 13590. 13565 -0.18

000

Rupee 64.520 63.87 -1.01

Ringgit 3.894 4.0440 +3.85

Yuan 6.345 6.5069 +2.55

(Reporting by Patturaja Murugaboopathy in Bengaluru; Editing by

Simon Cameron-Moore)