* Philippine peso slips 0.6%, Indonesian rupiah dips 0.2%
* Philippine, Taiwan stocks jump 1.1% and 0.8% respectively
* BSP expected to hold rates on Thursday
* US April CPI data due on Wednesday

By Poonam Behura
       May 13 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies lost ground
against the dollar on Monday, as traders awaited U.S. inflation
data to gauge the Federal Reserve's policy path for the rest of
this year, especially on the prospects of rate cuts amid
shifting market expectations.
    The Philippine peso slipped 0.4%, having retreated 4%
so far this year. The Indonesian rupiah fell 0.2% to its
lowest level in almost two weeks, but was hovering above the
psychologically important 16,000-per-dollar level. 
    The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is slated to hold its
monetary policy meeting on Thursday and is expected to keep
rates steady at 6.5%.
    "The BSP had previously given comments of support for the
PHP and we believe that the USDPHP can meet some limit near term
around the 58.00 mark," Alan Lau Sie Ping, a senior FX
Strategist at Maybank said.     
    The Taiwanese dollar and Malaysian ringgit
were down just over 1% each, with other regional currencies
remaining subdued as the greenback consolidated against peers
ahead of the U.S. consumer inflation data for April, due on
Wednesday.
    The dollar index was last steady at 105.312.
    A low U.S. inflation figure could boost wagers the Federal
Reserve will cut rates as soon as July, while a stronger outcome
could push the prospect of an easing past September.
    Analysts at SMBC don't expect the dollar to strengthen too
much against Asian currencies in the short term regardless of
whether U.S. inflation data beats expectations or not due to
continuous intervention by Asian central banks.
    In stock markets, the benchmark indexes in Philippines
 and Taiwan jumped 1.1% and 0.8%, respectively.
Indian and South Korean stocks saw outflows,
pushing down their markets by 0.5% and 0.4%, respectively.
    Chinese markets were choppy as investors pondered mixed
economic data while trade tensions with the United States hurt
sentiment. 
    Shanghai stocks fell 0.1%, after reports stated that
the U.S. was poised to announce tariffs on Chinese electric
vehicle and other strategic sectors.  
    Data over the weekend showed China's consumer prices rose
for a third consecutive month, helping to soothe worries about a
slide into prolonged deflation. But credit data came in soft for
last month, with new bank lending falling more than expected.   
 
    Market participants are keeping a watch for India's
inflation data expected later in the day. Other key events to
watch for this week are China's industrial production data and
central bank policy decision and Indonesia's trade data. 



HIGHLIGHTS
    ** BOJ cuts JGB purchase amount in hawkish signal to market
    ** New Biden tariffs on China's EVs, solar, medical supplies
due Tuesday - sources
    ** Citi upgrades India to "overweight" citing stable
earnings, economic growth


 Asia stock                                                    
 indexes and                                             
 currencies                                              
 at 0408 GMT                                             
 COUNTRY      FX RIC           FX     FX  INDEX  STOCKS  STOCKS
                          DAILY %  YTD %          DAILY   YTD %
                                                      %  
 Japan                      -0.02  -9.43  <.N22  -0.37   14.42
                                          5>             
 China                      -0.10  -1.88  <.SSE   -0.08    5.95
                                          C>             
 India                      -0.01  -0.36  <.NSE   -0.51    0.97
                                          I>             
 Indonesia                  -0.22  -4.23  <.JKS   -0.06   -2.58
                                          E>             
 Malaysia                   -0.15  -3.25  <.KLS    0.14   10.19
                                          E>             
 Philippines                -0.55  -4.12  <.PSI    1.11    2.08
                                          >              
 S.Korea                    -0.07  -5.92  <.KS1   -0.36    2.35
                                          1>             
 Singapore                  +0.01  -2.58  <.STI    0.14    1.70
                                          >              
 Taiwan                     -0.10  -5.27  <.TWI    0.84   16.47
                                          I>             
 Thailand                   -0.10  -7.12  <.SET    0.09   -3.02
                                          I>             
 


    
 (Reporting by Poonam Behura in Bengaluru
Editing by Shri Navaratnam)