EM ASIA FX-Peso dips, Singapore dlr up despite intervention fear

* Peso extends losses as investors take dim view on economy

* Singapore dollar rises but capped by intervention fears

SINGAPORE, June 18 - The Philippine peso extended recent losses on Thursday on heightened concerns about the health of the economy, while the Singapore dollar's rise fuelled fears of possible central bank intervention.

The dollar steadied against the euro hovering near lows struck the previous day after tame U.S. inflation data further dampened speculation the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates any time soon.

PESO

The Philippine peso lost a third of a percent to 48.50 per dollar, its lowest since April 30, as investors dumped local stocks amid worries about the economy.

"Sentiment is still very negative for the Philippine economy in the short term as epitomised by the weakness of the stock market," said a Manila-based trader.

The Philippines recorded a balance of payments deficit in May, the second monthly shortfall this year, on higher external debt payments by the government and central bank.

On the chart, dollar/peso faced some resistance at 48.57 and the break of that could take the pair to 48.70, traders said. Meanwhile, three-month dollar/peso NDFs steady at 49.02, implying a 1.2 percent peso fall from the spot compared to 1.7 percent on Wednesday.

The peso has been hurt in recent weeks by concerns about the country's economic outlook and a widening budget deficit as the government ratchet up spending to support growth.

SINGAPORE DOLLAR

The Singapore dollar edged up to 1.4515 per U.S. dollar -- its highest in nearly a week -- taking its cue from the euro's rise against the dollar.

But the gain was limited on jitters of official intervention to cap its strength.

"It's all euro driven," said a Singapore-based trader, referring Singapore dollar's rise.

Some traders fretted about central bank intervention as they believed the Singapore dollar had risen to the firmer end of its undisclosed band.

But Westpac strategist Sean Callow said he reckoned the central bank let the local unit move at least 2 percent up or down from the mid-point within the band, which indicated little urgency for the central bank to intervene.

"I agree it's on the stronger side of the band but is not close to the edge," he said.

Singapore's central bank manages the currency within a trade-weighted band to steer monetary policy. In April, it eased policy by lowering the mid-point of the band to support the recession-hit economy. CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR Change on the day at 0616 GMT Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move Japan yen 95.77 95.69 -0.08 Sing dlr 1.4532 1.4540 +0.06 Taiwan dlr 32.903 32.889 -0.04 Korean won 1266.20 1259.80 -0.51 Baht 34.10 34.15 +0.15 Peso 48.44 48.34 -0.21 Rupiah 10250.00 10200.00 -0.49 Rupee 48.04 48.12 +0.17 Ringgit 3.5250 3.5310 +0.17 Yuan 6.8337 6.8374 +0.05 Change so far in 2009 Currency Latest bid End prev year Pct Move Japan yen 95.77 90.60 -5.40 Sing dlr 1.4532 1.4340 -1.32 Taiwan dlr 32.903 32.860 -0.13 Korean won 1266.20 1259.50 -0.53 Baht 34.10 34.80 +2.05 Peso 48.44 47.52 -1.90 Rupiah 10250.00 11000.00 +7.32 Rupee 48.04 48.71 +1.39 Ringgit 3.5250 3.4500 -2.13 Yuan 6.8337 6.8230 -0.16