EMERGING MARKETS-Asian stocks, FX climb for a second day as dollar eases

* Baht hits highest since Aug 24 * China's CPI rose at slower-than-expected pace in August * Asian stocks and FX rise for a second day By Tejaswi Marthi Sept 9 (Reuters) - Asian currencies and stocks rose for a second day on Friday after the U.S. dollar took a breather from its unrelenting rally even as hawkish comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair reaffirmed bets of policy tightening ahead. The Thai baht advanced 0.5% and hit an over two-week high to lead gains in the region, followed by the Singapore dollar, which rose 0.4% and was eyeing its best day since Aug 23. The Malaysian ringgit and the Philippine peso also edged higher. Fed chair Jerome Powell on Thursday said the bank is "strongly committed" to controlling inflation but there remains hope it can be done without the "very high social costs" involved in prior inflation fights. This reinforced market expectations for another 75 basis point increase at the upcoming FOMC meeting on Sept 22. "Markets are interpreting softer activity data as a trigger for a possible central bank pivot, but the message from the Fed is that the only thing that matters is drivers that will bring inflation to heel," said Rodrigo Catril, Senior FX strategist at NAB. U.S. rate futures have priced in an 86% chance the Fed will raise rates by another 75 basis points at this month's meeting, which would increase the Fed funds rate to 3.0% to 3.25%. Stocks in the region rallied for a second day as well. Singapore's was up 0.8%, followed by a 0.4% climb Thailand stocks. Stocks in Malaysia and Philippines rose as well. Although the ongoing recovery in risk sentiment is proving to be positive for Asia, China's economic slowdown could weigh on growth in the region. China's consumer prices rose at a slower-than-expected pace in August amid heatwaves and COVID-19 flare-ups, suggesting that world's second-biggest economy, already depressed by property market weakness, further lost momentum last month. "China data release screams for scrutiny, especially as the release of unexpectedly disappointing trade data casts fresh glare on the precarious balance in which China's economy hangs," said Vishnu Varathan, head of economics and strategy at Mizuho Bank. "This suggests that China's stimulus may not be sufficient to save the economy from self-inflicted pain and extraneous headwinds," he added. Meanwhile, oil prices were set to fall for a second straight week on worries that central banks' aggressive rate hikes and China's COVID-19 curbs will hurt demand. HIGHLIGHTS: ** India, the world's largest exporter of gains, imposed exports of broken rice and imposed a 20% duty on exports of various grades of rice, which could fuel food inflation [ nL1N30G01P] ** Philippines July trade deficit hits record high $5.93 bln ** Asia's central banks, alarmed by the surging dollar's assault on their currencies, are ramping up their resistance with rate rises and market interventions Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0405 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % X DAILY YTD % % Japan +0.70 -19.5 <.N2 0.40 -2.14 8 25> China EC> India +0.10 -6.66 <.NS 0.56 3.13 EI> Indonesi +0.28 -4.06 <.JK -0.08 9.80 a SE> Malaysia +0.10 -7.35 <.KL 0.16 -4.49 SE> Philippi +0.39 -10.3 <.PS 0.23 -7.22 nes 2 I> S.Korea 0 11> Singapor +0.44 -3.58 <.ST 0.83 4.39 e I> Taiwan +0.11 -10.3 <.TW 1.20 -19.95 7 II> Thailand +0.48 -8.02 <.SE 0.41 -0.66 TI> (Reporting by Tejaswi Marthi in Bengaluru)