EMERGING MARKETS-Thai baht leads Asia FX losses after strong U.S. jobs data

* Thai baht, Malaysian ringgit among losers * Investor focus on U.S. CPI, due Wednesday * Stocks in South Korea lead gains By Navya Mittal April 10 (Reuters) - The Thai baht led declines among emerging Asian market currencies on Monday, after strong U.S. payrolls data released last week strengthened the case for further Federal Reserve rate hikes and dampened risk sentiment. The Thai baht weakened 0.6%, and Malaysian ringgit depreciated 0.2%, while the Indonesian rupiah and Philippine peso were largely unchanged. The world's largest economy increased jobs at a brisk clip, data showed on Friday, signalling labour market resilience that is expected to keep the Fed on track to raise interest rates one more time next month. "Wage growth staying further below 5% will give the Fed some comfort the risk of wage-price spiral is not imminent but the persistent tightness in some industry segments is likely to keep the Fed on track for one more hike in May," Alvin Liew, senior economist at UOB, said in a note. Markets participants will now turn to the U.S. inflation print due on Wednesday that will shape the path the Fed will take in its battle against rising prices. Minutes of the central bank's last meeting in March are also scheduled to be released on Wednesday. Mounting recession worries and the tumult in the banking system sparked by the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in March have raised investor hopes that the Fed will cut rates in the second half of the year to ward off an economic downturn. Markets are currently pricing in a 70% chance of a 25 basis point hike at the end of the Fed monetary policy meeting in May, while also pricing in rate cuts before year-end. "There appears to be no clear-cut trend in the FX space, despite the early U.S. dollar declines that boosted most other currencies," said Vishnu Varathan, head of economics and strategy at Mizuho Bank. "But the bottom line is that Fed relief, based on bets that the Fed will have to stop hiking far sooner and reverse course sharply in second half, is now somewhat more fraught." Stocks across the region eked out small gains with South Korea's benchmark leading the rises. Shares in the Philippines and Taiwan gained more than 0.2% each. The Singapore dollar was up 0.1%. The country will hold its monetary policy meeting on Friday, where it is expected to tighten policy for the sixth consecutive time amid supply chain disruptions globally. Elsewhere in the region, Thailand's central bank expects the economy will grow 3.6% this year. Fiscal and monetary policy should prioritise stability rather than economic stimulus, Bank of Thailand's governor said on Monday. Highlights ** Indonesian 10-year benchmark yields are down 1.8 basis points at 6.661% ** Indonesia's FX reserves rise to $145.2 bln in March - c.bank ** Malaysia says it will protect its rights in South China Sea Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0336 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % X DAILY YTD % % Japan -0.38 -1.15 <.N2 0.42 7.45 25> China EC> India +0.08 +1.10 <.NS 0.00 -2.80 EI> Indonesi +0.07 +4.46 <.JK -0.65 -1.49 a SE> Malaysia -0.14 -0.16 <.KL -0.02 -4.60 SE> Philippi +0.06 +2.05 <.PS - -1.19 nes I> S.Korea 11> Singapor +0.11 +0.71 <.ST -0.03 1.48 e I> Taiwan -0.01 +0.85 <.TW 0.25 12.30 II> Thailand -0.66 +0.76 <.SE 0.10 -5.40 TI> (Reporting by Navya Mittal in Bengaluru; Editing by Jamie Freed)