EMERGING MARKETS-Asian currencies inch higher, Thai politics in focus

* S. Korean won, Thai baht lead gains * Thailand's parliament to endorse house speaker later in the day * Malaysia c.bank to hold key rate at 3.00% - Reuters poll By Upasana Singh July 4 (Reuters) - Most Asian emerging currencies rose on Tuesday, while investors turned their attention to Thailand's political progress with the parliament expected to endorse the house speaker later in the day. The Thai baht, among the top gainers in the region, strengthened 0.4%. Late on Monday, in what is being seen as a compromise between the Move Forward party and the Pheu Thai party, the alliance nominated veteran politician Wan Muhamad Noor Matha for the house speaker post. The speaker is expected to table a joint session of parliament later this month to decide on a prime minister, which requires the votes of more than half of the 750 members of the bicameral legislature. "Further progress in the appointment of the new PM could bolster investor confidence, supporting equity inflows into Thailand and helping the baht recover its post-election loss," said Wei Liang Chang, a macro strategist at DBS Bank. Meanwhile, Malaysia's central bank will leave its key interest rate unchanged at 3.00% on Thursday and keep it there for the rest of the year, marking the end of its modest tightening cycle, a Reuters poll found. The ringgit, which is among the worst performing currencies in the region this year, firmed 0.1% on Tuesday. "The risk of additional tightening will rise more noticeably, in our view, if inflationary pressures build from the implementation of targeted fuel subsidies," OCBC's senior ASEAN economist Lavanya Venkateswaran said in a note. South Korea's won advanced 0.5% after data showed the country's consumer inflation slowed more than expected and hit a 21-month low. However, Bank of Korea warned core inflation might stay higher than its earlier projection. Elsewhere, the Chinese yuan rose 0.2%, while the Indian rupee and the Singapore dollar appreciated 0.1% each. Indonesia's rupiah was trading flat. Stock markets in the region were broadly lower, with equities in Kuala Lumpur falling 0.4% to lead losses. Shares in Seoul and Singapore dipped 0.2% each. HIGHLIGHTS: ** China to restrict exports of chipmaking materials as U.S. mulls new curbs ** MISC down 1.4% and IHH Healthcare down 1.7% lead losses on Malaysia's benchmark index The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against the dollar at 0343 GMT. COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDEX STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % DAILY YTD % % Japan +0.02 -9.35 -0.91 28.17 China +0.16 -4.61 0.06 5.07 India +0.07 +1.00 0.00 6.72 Indonesia +0.00 +3.63 0.01 -2.24 Malaysia +0.11 -5.58 -0.39 -7.02 Philippines +0.11 +0.80 -0.04 -0.93 S.Korea +0.48 -2.87 -0.22 16.12 Singapore +0.07 -0.76 -0.17 -1.53 Taiwan -0.01 -1.37 0.12 20.98 Thailand +0.41 -1.24 -0.10 -9.79 (Reporting by Upasana Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Himani Sarkar)