EM ASIA FX-Most currencies soften as trade war fears grow

* Sing. dollar, yen rise on safe haven buys

* S. Korean won leads losses

* Rupiah drops while Cen. Bank stays pat

(Adds details, updates prices)

By Ambar Warrick

March 23 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies softened on

Friday as investors fled riskier assets after a volley of

threats between the United States and China escalated fears of a

global trade war.

Markets had already been skittish ahead of proposed U.S.

steel and aluminum tariffs due to come into effect on Friday,

although six countries and the European Union were granted

temporary exemption.

President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum on

Thursday that could impose tariffs on up to $60 billion of

imports from China, while the Chinese commerce ministry unveiled

plans to levy duties on up to $3 billion of select U.S. imports.

"Most Asian currencies depreciated this week, caught between

heightened US-led global trade tensions and a mildly hawkish Fed

hike outlook. Although protectionism has yet to dampen the

global economic outlook, it has started to incrementally weigh

on business and investor sentiment," DBS said in a note.

As such, safe haven buys like the Japanese yen and

the Singapore dollar rose. Gold prices were also

higher.

Equity markets took a large hit from the news, while the

dollar extended losses. Asian units however, failed to

capitalize on the dollar weakness.

The South Korean won fell about 0.7 percent to a

near 3-week low against the dollar. The currency was on track

for its worst week since early February.

South Korean shares fell to a two-week low.

Sentiment was further soured after Trump replaced H.R.

McMaster as national security adviser with John Bolton, a hawk

who has advocated using military force against North Korea and

Iran.

The Indonesian rupiah fell about 0.3 percent to the

dollar, and was on track to end the week 0.3 percent lower.

Indonesia's central bank on Thursday kept its policy rate

unchanged, as expected, and said it remained committed to

maintaining a presence in the foreign-exchange market to

stabilise the rupiah, which is among the worst performing

currencies for the year.

On the other hand, the Singapore dollar benefitted from safe

haven buying, rising about 0.1 percent. The currency has shown

steady growth in 2018, bolstered by strong economic fundamentals

in the island state, particularly a strong trade balance.

Singapore's core inflation picked up slightly more than

expected in February to a 10-month high, data showed on Friday,

adding to the debate over whether the Monetary Authority of

Singapore may consider tightening policy at its review next

month.

ASIAN CURRENCIES SEEN SOFTENING FURTHER

Investors increased their bearish bets on the Indian rupee

to the highest since 2016, while trimming their long positions

in other Asian currencies over the past two weeks, a Reuters

poll showed.

Long positions in the Malaysian ringgit decreased and

were at their lowest in five months, while long positions in the

South Korean won and the Singapore dollar too were scaled back.

Bearish bets on the Indian rupee were at their

highest since November 2016 as concerns about the country's

swelling current account deficit weighed.

The rupee, which fell about 0.1 percent, has also been

wracked by a major banking scandal in the country, which

prompted investment bank Goldman Sachs to cut its forecasts for

India's economy.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar on Friday.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Change on the day at 0459 GMT

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 104.830 105.26 +0.41

Sing dlr 1.316 1.3167 +0.06

Taiwan dlr 29.173 29.153 -0.07

Korean won 1080.700 1072.7 -0.74

Baht 31.240 31.255 +0.05

Peso 52.315 52.2 -0.22

Rupiah 13790.000 13750 -0.29

Rupee 65.145 65.10 -0.07

Ringgit 3.915 3.912 -0.08

Yuan 6.331 6.3288 -0.03

Change so far in 2018

Currency Latest bid End 2017 Pct Move

Japan yen 104.830 112.67 +7.48

Sing dlr 1.316 1.3373 +1.63

Taiwan dlr 29.173 29.848 +2.31

Korean won 1080.700 1070.50 -0.94

Baht 31.240 32.58 +4.29

Peso 52.315 49.93 -4.56

Rupiah 13790.000 13565 -1.63

Rupee 65.145 63.87 -1.96

Ringgit 3.915 4.0440 +3.30

Yuan 6.331 6.5069 +2.78

(Reporting by Ambar Warrick in Bengaluru, Editing by Kim

Coghill)