EMERGING MARKETS-Asian stocks retreat as investors assess hawkish Fed; currencies trade mixed

* Stocks in Jakarta hit lowest level since July * Singapore stocks fall over 1% * Philippine peso touches highest since June By Himanshi Akhand Jan 10 (Reuters) - Stocks in Indonesia and Singapore led declines among emerging Asian equities on Tuesday, while currencies in the region were mixed as cautious investors digested hawkish comments from two U.S. Federal Reserve officials overnight. The comments came ahead of Fed chair Jerome Powell's speech, due later today. Equities in Indonesia fell as much as 1.8%, hitting their lowest level since July 2022, while stocks in Singapore slipped as much as 1.1%. Analysts at OCBC said that hawkish rhetoric from Fed officials Raphael Bostic and Mary Daly, who said they expect rates to go somewhere over 5%, shook earlier market confidence that the U.S. central bank was near a pivot point. "While both officials are not voting members currently, the de-risking could come from fears that Powell's upcoming speech could mirror the hawkish tone with some pushback as well," said Yeap Jun Rong, Market Analyst at IG. In the Philippines, the country's central bank chief confirmed interest rates would likely need to rise a further 25 or 50 basis points at next month's policy meeting, but added that pressure to match Fed's rate hikes was waning. The peso rose for a fifth consecutive session, adding as much as 0.2% to touch its highest level since June 2022, while the country recorded a better-than-expected trade deficit of $3.7 billion for November. "The PHP may enjoy some appreciation momentum in the near term on the improving balance of trade," analysts at ING wrote, adding that a potential drop in exports later in the year could spell some renewed depreciation pressure on the currency. Other regional currencies were mixed even as the U.S. dollar hovered near a seven-month low. The Indian rupee added 0.2%, while the Singaporean dollar, the Thai baht and the South Korean won declined between 0.1% and 0.2%. The Chinese yuan advanced for the fifth trading day, hitting a new near five-month high, riding on reopening optimism. IG's Rong, however, added that the risk of virus waves after the Chinese New Year period could be a catalyst for some jitters, potentially prompting profit-taking activities among Asian emerging assets in the near term. Elsewhere, Brazil's real last stood at 5.2546 per dollar, having fallen more than 1% on Monday after supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed the capital. It had yet to trade as of Asia hours on Tuesday. HIGHLIGHTS ** Top losers on the Jakarta stock index include Fuji Finance Indonesia Tbk PT and Geoprima Solusi Tbk PT ** Top losers on the Singapore STI include Jardine Matheson and Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust ** U.S. consumer price index (CPI) data due on Thursday Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0705 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % X DAILY YTD % % Japan -0.14 -0.73 <.N2 0.78 0.31 25> China EC> India +0.22 +0.66 <.NS -0.79 -0.81 EI> Indonesi -0.13 -0.13 <.JK -1.61 -3.94 a SE> Malaysia +0.02 +0.64 <.KL -0.64 -0.78 SE> Philippi +0.16 +1.51 <.PS -0.49 2.90 nes I> S.Korea 11> Singapor -0.11 +0.61 <.ST -1.09 0.56 e I> Taiwan +0.25 +0.86 <.TW 0.34 4.71 II> Thailand -0.22 +3.22 <.SE -0.06 1.29 TI> (Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru)