EMERGING MARKETS-Asia stocks extend gains as Mideast escalation fears ease; FX tepid

* Singapore stocks highest since Sept 2023 * Indonesia rate decision on April 24 * Singapore March CPI lower-than-expected By Ayushman Ojha April 23 (Reuters) - Equities in Asia extended gains on Tuesday with a jump in Singapore shares, while currencies were largely subdued, still pressured by the strong U.S. dollar as markets have scaled back rate cut expectations. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.5%, after a positive start on Monday, rebounding from a dismal 3.7% drop in the last week due to heightened Middle East tensions. Singapore stocks rose as much as 1.44% to their highest level in six months, while Malaysian shares touched their highest level since May 2022 with a 0.5% jump. In the Philippine, shares were up as much as 1%, and Taiwan shares rose as much as 1.5%, while stocks in Indonesia added as much as 1.3%. Currencies in the region remained tepid as hotter than anticipated U.S. inflation data last week led to markets scaling back expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts. Markets are currently pricing in a 46% chance of the Fed's first rate cut starting in September, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. A few weeks ago, bets were on June for the U.S. monetary easing cycle to begin. Market participants are awaiting U.S. first-quarter gross domestic product data on Thursday and personal consumption price expenditures (PCE) index, the Fed's preferred measure of inflation, on Friday, to further assess the rate-cut outlook. "Sharp depreciations in Asian currencies will be a key factor for (regional) central banks when thinking about when they're going to cut rates," said Lloyd Chan, FX Strategist at MUFG. The Indonesian rupiah was largely unchanged ahead of a policy rate decision on Wednesday. The central bank on Friday intervened in forex markets "more boldly to maintain market confidence" as the rupiah weakened. According to a Reuters poll, Bank Indonesia (BI) will cut its key interest rate next quarter and again in the fourth quarter, later than previously expected, as inflation rises and the rupiah weakens on renewed hawkishness from the Federal Reserve. "I think there's no catalyst at the moment for sustained strength in the Indonesian rupiah and in terms of rate decisions by Bank Indonesia our base case is still that BI will keep policy rates at 6%," MUFG's Chan added. Elsewhere, The Malaysian ringgit and the Taiwanese dollar were largely flat, while the Philppine peso inched 0.1% higher. The Vietnamese dong was largely unchanged, still near its lowest level on record touched during last week. In Singapore, data showed the key consumer price gauge rose 3.1% in March on a yearly basis, lower than economists' forecasts. The Singapore dollar was largely unchanged. HIGHLIGHTS: ** Indonesia court rejects election challenges, upholds Prabowo's win ** Thai c.bank could adjust rates if economic outlook shifts, deputy governor says ** Singapore Exchange proposes rule change to help investors call special meetings Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0508 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY FX INDEX STOCKS STOCKS % YTD % DAILY YTD % % Japan +0.05 -8.85 +0.46 12.39 China -0.02 -2.04 -0.41 1.92 India +0.03 -0.16 0.34 3.13 Indonesia -0.03 -5.17 0.68 -2.07 Malaysia -0.02 -3.89 0.32 7.56 Philippines +0.12 -3.54 0.93 0.83 S.Korea +0.12 -6.50 -0.03 -1.01 Singapore -0.07 -3.21 1.22 0.75 Taiwan +0.02 -5.81 1.18 9.53 Thailand -0.06 -7.68 0.85 -3.87 (Reporting by Ayushman Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill)