* China stocks gain, yuan weakens

* China's cenbank cuts short-term lending rate

* Turkey's lira hovers near record low

* EM stocks up 1.0%

June 13 (Reuters) - Emerging market stocks closed in on four-month highs on Tuesday and the yuan fell after China lowered borrowing costs to prop up investor confidence and help its faltering post-pandemic economic growth regain vigour.

MSCI's emerging market equities index climbed 1.0% by 0837 am GMT, with stocks in Asia leading the advance.

China's blue-chip index was up 0.5% while the yuan dropped to a six-month low after China's central bank lowered a short-term lending rate for the first time in 10 months.

The decision comes after growing evidence of the country's weak post-pandemic recovery, which had sputtered following a strong start to the year, had boosted hopes of a policy stimulus.

The central bank's actions have the potential to add further downward pressure on the yuan, according to J.P.Morgan strategists.

The lowering of rates "points to further widening of yield differentials between the U.S. and China, a structurally negative factor for CNY FX," JPM's Tiffany Wang and Arindam Sandilya wrote in a research note.

Stocks in Hong Kong and Taiwan were up 0.6% and 1.5%, respectively.

Still concerns about geopolitical risks, including from recent U.S. sanctions, kept a lid on sentiment.

Market focus is also on a number of monetary policy decisions from major central banks this week, including the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Investors are awaiting data on U.S. consumer prices in May due later in the day, for further clarity on the direction of interest rates in the world's largest economy amid growing hopes for a pause in tightening.

Turkey's lira hovered close to its recent record low and was last at 23.67 to the dollar.

The lira has seen a heavy selloff in recent days, driven by the loosening of intervention measures that had been supporting the currency, with investors keenly awaiting commentary from the new finance minister and central bank governor on a widely expected pivot to more orthodox monetary policies.

Among central and eastern European currencies, the Polish zloty led declines, falling 0.5% against the euro and pulling back sharply from recent two-year highs.

The South African rand also fell 0.5% against the dollar, snapping an eight-day winning streak.

For GRAPHIC on emerging market FX performance in 2023, see http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh For GRAPHIC on MSCI emerging index performance in 2023, see https://tmsnrt.rs/2OusNdX

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For CENTRAL EUROPE market report, see

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For RUSSIAN market report, see (Reporting by Amruta Khandekar; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)