EM ASIA FX-Most currencies softer ahead of Sino-U.S. trade clarity

* Rupiah hits 2-week low on wider trade deficit, oil prices

* Philippine peso weakens the most

* Thai baht bucks regional downtrend

(Adds text, updates prices)

By Aditya Soni

Feb 15 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies ticked lower

against the dollar on Friday, with investors cautious ahead of

the outcome of Sino-U.S. trade talks and buoyant oil prices

weighing on major oil importers.

With no decision to extend a March 1 deadline for a deal

amid scant signs of progress, markets were in wait-and-see mode

ahead of a meeting between the Trump administration's top two

negotiators and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

"The sentiment is a bit wary given that we are seeing mixed

signals coming out from the U.S.- China trade talks," Sim Moh

Siong, FX strategist at Bank of Singapore said.

Losses in emerging Asia were led by the Philippine peso

and Indonesian rupiah.

Hit by the one-two punch of higher oil prices and a wider

than forecast trade deficit in January the rupiah dropped to a

two-week low, putting it on track for a weekly loss of 1.2

percent, its biggest since October.

Southeast Asia's largest economy, which has been struggling

to shrink its trade and current account deficits for months,

had a trade gap of $1.16 billion in the first month of 2019,

official data showed.

The currencies of major oil importers weakened as Brent

crude prices hit 2019 highs. The peso and Indian rupee

dipped 0.4 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively.

Both the peso and rupee, which are among the worst

performing Asian currencies so far this year, were headed for a

weekly loss.

The South Korean won, which is heavily vulnerable

to global trade turmoil, slid 0.3 percent to a three-week low.

The won's move was in line with the local KOSPI stock index

which fell 1 percent.

Bucking the trend, the Thai baht the region's best

performer so far this year and in 2018, firmed 0.2 percent.

Thailand's strong economic fundamentals, which consist of

steady exports and domestic production, have made the baht a

bastion of stability in Asia.

The Chinese yuan, Singapore dollar and

Taiwan dollar held a soft tone amid weaker economic

fundamentals.

Singapore reported its lowest GDP growth in two years on

Friday, while Taiwan's government trimmed its 2019 economic

growth earlier this week as Asia export-focused economies feel

the brunt of slowing global growth and the rippling effects of

the long drawn China-U.S. trade war.

Meanwhile, China which is also grappling with cooling

domestic demand saw its factory-gate inflation slow for a

seventh straight month in January to its weakest pace since

September 2016, raising concerns the world's second-biggest

economy may see the return of deflation.

BULLS ADVANCE

Bullish positions on most Asian currencies strengthened over

the past few weeks, a Reuters poll showed, reflecting newfound

optimism that the United States and China would settle their

long-drawn trade spat.

Long bets on the Chinese yuan, Singapore dollar , Indonesian

rupiah and the Thai baht rose substantially, a poll of 12

respondents showed.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar at 0542 GMT.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 110.340 110.47 +0.12

Sing dlr 1.358 1.3578 -0.04

Taiwan dlr 30.841 30.833 -0.03

Korean won 1128.200 1125.1 -0.27

Baht 31.290 31.35 +0.19

Peso 52.510 52.28 -0.44

Rupiah 14125.000 14085 -0.28

Rupee 71.320 71.16 -0.22

Ringgit 4.080 4.074 -0.15

Yuan 6.777 6.7718 -0.08

Change so far in 2019

Currency Latest bid End 2018 Pct Move

Japan yen 110.340 109.56 -0.71

Sing dlr 1.358 1.3627 +0.32

Taiwan dlr 30.841 30.733 -0.35

Korean won 1128.200 1115.70 -1.11

Baht 31.290 32.55 +4.03

Peso 52.510 52.47 -0.08

Rupiah 14125.000 14375 +1.77

Rupee 71.320 69.77 -2.17

Ringgit 4.080 4.1300 +1.23

Yuan 6.777 6.8730 +1.41

(Reporting by Aditya Soni in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by

Shriya R; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)