EMERGING MARKETS-Thai baht set to fall for third straight quarter ahead of c.bank meet

* World Bank cuts Thai GDP growth outlook to 1% in 2021 * Philippine stocks fall over 1% * Malaysia's August exports rise 18.4%, above forecast By Arundhati Dutta Sept 28 (Reuters) - The Thai baht weakened on Tuesday, as rising oil prices weighed on net importing nations in emerging Asian markets, while investors also remained cautious ahead of a central bank policy decision. The currency, the worst-performing one in Asia this year, fell 0.3% and is set to extend losses for the third straight quarter. A Reuters poll expects the Bank of Thailand to leave its key interest rate at a record low on Wednesday, as tougher coronavirus restrictions have been eased to support a flagging economy. However, analysts at DBS say it will be a close call between a cut and a hold. "We are expecting a 55% chance of a 25bps cut to a fresh record low of 0.25%... it will be the first dissent for a cut since March 2020 and sets the stage for an impending pre-emptive easing," they wrote in a note. Oil prices extended their rally into a sixth session amid persistent concerns over tight supply, while U.S. Treasury yields have been underpinned by the prospect of stimulus tapering. A mix of higher energy prices and rising Treasury yields may not bode well for Asian currencies outside Japan, especially those of net energy importers such as Thailand, analysts at Maybank said. Thailand's tourism-reliant economy has been hammered by a spike in COVID-19 cases and a delayed reopening to visitors, prompting the World Bank to cut its 2021 economic growth outlook to 1% from the 2.2% projected in July. Higher oil prices helped Thailand's stock market eke out a 0.3% gain on the back of heavyweight energy stocks such as PTT Exploration and Production, even as trading volumes were about 0.1% of the 30 day average. Most other Asian stocks traded mostly in the red amid investor concerns about the future of cash-strapped real estate giant China Evergrande after it missed a bond interest payment last week, and worries power shortages in China could hurt its 2021 growth outlook. Philippine stocks fell over 1% and hit their lowest level in a week, while Taiwan equities dropped 0.8%. On the upside, Malaysian stocks gained 0.6% as exports in August rose 18.4% from a year earlier, more than expected. HIGHLIGHTS: ** Malaysia's 3-year benchmark yield is up 0.2 basis points at 2.529%​​ ** Indonesian 10-year benchmark yields are up 4.6 basis points at 6.29 Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0728 GMT COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCKS STOCKS DAILY % YTD % X DAILY YTD % % Japan -0.27 -7.24 <.N2 -0.19 9.98 25> China EC> India -0.28 -1.33 <.NS -0.87 26.59 EI> Indonesi -0.18 -1.65 <.JK -0.32 2.07 a SE> Malaysia -0.01 -3.99 <.KL 0.64 -5.18 SE> Philippi +0.16 -5.84 <.PS -1.02 -3.56 nes I> S.Korea 11> Singapor -0.18 -2.57 <.ST -0.44 8.54 e I> Taiwan -0.18 +2.56 <.TW -0.76 16.62 II> Thailand -0.39 -11.0 <.SE 0.31 12.12 5 TI> (Reporting by Arundhati Dutta in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)