EMERGING MARKETS-Asian stocks, FX extend fall as markets assess Fed outlook

* Indonesia's rupiah set for sharpest daily fall in over a month * Singapore stocks buck trend, only to gain in the region * Stocks in Malaysia down for the 4th day By Navya Mittal Nov 17 (Reuters) - Emerging Asian stocks and currencies extended falls on Thursday against the dollar, which found some support on the back of stronger-than-expected U.S. retail sales data overnight. U.S retail sales increased more than expected in October, indicating consumer spending in the United States picked up early in the fourth quarter. Investors are keeping a close eye on U.S. data releases to gauge whether inflation in the world's largest economy is cooling and the Federal Reserve will slow the pace of its aggressive monetary tightening. The South Korean won fell as much as 1.5%, on track for its biggest daily drop in a month. Thailand's bhat and Malaysia's ringgit lost over 0.2% each. "The retail sales do add to the point that U.S. economy is still doing relatively well," said Alivin Tan, head of Asia FX strategy at RBC Capital Markets. "The Fed is still going to hike rates even though they are going to reduce the pace on it, the rate differential will continue to widen in the dollar's favour." In Southeast Asia, investors braced for rate hikes from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and Bank Indonesia (BI), with the decisions due around 0700 GMT. Indonesia's rupiah shed 0.5% amid the broader market weakness, and was on track for its sharpest daily fall in over a month. BI is expected to deliver a third consecutive 50-basis-point (bp) hike, according to a Reuters poll. "We expect BI to hike by 50 bp to combat elevated headline and core inflation. The relatively sizable rate hike will also be needed to steady the currency which is the worst-performing regional currency for November," ING analysts said in an note. In the Philippines, BSP is expected to deliver a jumbo 75 bps hike, partly to limit the downside for the peso, which has tumbled 11% so far this year. Most regional stock markets also trended lower. South Korea stocks fell 1%, Malaysia's benchmark index dropped 0.3% and Thai equities eased 0.4%. The losses came even after Bank of Thailand assistant governor said on Wednesday the economy would reach pre-pandemic levels towards the end of 2022 or in early 2023. A Reuters poll on Thursday also predicted that Thailand's economy grew at its fastest pace in more than a year last quarter, boosted by a rebound in tourism and private consumption. Bucking the broader trend, Singapore stocks rose 0.4%, helped by gains in financial stocks and utilities. HIGHLIGHTS ** Chinese and Indonesian presidents pledge more COVID vaccine cooperation ** Foreigners exit Asian bonds for second straight month in October ** Top gainers on the Singapore STI include Sembcorp Industries up 5.86% at S$3.07, Singapore Exchange and up over 1% at S$9.23, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding up ​ 1.53% at S$1.33 Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0343 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDEX STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % DAILY YTD % % Japan -0.06 -17.5 -0.35 -2.99 9 China -0.47 -10.9 -1.04 -15.17 1 India -0.40 -8.94 0.00 6.08 Indonesi -0.57 -9.18 -0.20 6.37 a Malaysia -0.18 -8.44 -0.29 -7.87 Philippi -0.05 -11.2 0.09 -10.17 nes 4 S.Korea -1.38 -11.5 -1.07 -17.69 1 Singapor -0.28 -1.79 0.26 4.83 e Taiwan -0.13 -11.1 -0.52 -20.62 2 Thailand -0.18 -6.86 -0.40 -2.66 (Reporting by Navya Mittal; Editing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa)