Emerging markets - Indonesian benchmark falls for third straight session as Philippine peso leads decline but Thai baht rises

JAKARTA, Feb 14 (Reuters): Most Asian currencies and stocks were under pressure on Monday, with the Philippines Peso leading declines as geopolitical tensions resulted in a boost to the dollar, while the Thai baht touched a five-month high.

The peso slipped as much as 0.3% to mark its worst day in a week, while Malaysia's ringgit and the Indian rupee dropped between 0.1% and 0.3%.

However, the Thai baht gained as much as 0.5% to touch its highest since early September, supported by a recent gain in gold prices. It later erased gains and was down 0.3% as at 0601 GMT but hovered near their three-month highs.

"The baht has gotten some support from the rise in gold prices, which led to profit-taking from gold players," said Poon Panichpibool, a market strategist with Krung Thai Bank.

Selling gold in US dollar and converting it to baht would give a boost to the local currency, Panichpibool added.

Markets have gone on the defensive due to rising tensions over Ukraine, with risk-sensitive Asian markets seeing outflows towards safe-haven assets including the dollar and gold.

"With US intelligence assessments estimating a possible full-scale invasion by Russia into Ukraine soon, ongoing geopolitical developments are likely to keep investors on edge this week and prop up safe haven demand for the dollar," analysts from MUFG Bank said in a research note.

Rising inflation across the globe and winding down of pandemic-era stimulus by major central banks have also weighed on Asian markets, as central banks in the region inch towards normalisation as their economies recover.

The Indonesian rupiah edged up about 0.2% ahead of the release of trade data on Tuesday, while South Korean won rose 0.6% to touch a near four-week high.

Elsewhere, shares in Jakarta and Bangkok and China slipped between 0.7% and 1.5%, with the Indonesian benchmark falling for the third straight session, the most since late January.

India's Nifty 50 tumbled over 2% on the ongoing tensions in Ukraine. South Korea's KOSPI lost about 1.5% after the country continued to post record-high Covid-19 cases for the fifth consecutive day, leading to more restrictions.

Shares in Manila gained around 1.3% after the Philippine central bank said it was keen on continuing its record low interest rates to support economic recovery.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is set to outline its monetary policy decision on Thursday, where it is expected to maintain its key interest rate at a record low of 2%. - Reuters