* Singapore stocks highest since Sept 2023
* Indonesia rate decision on April 24
* Singapore March CPI lower-than-expected

By Ayushman Ojha
       April 23 (Reuters) - Equities in Asia extended gains on
Tuesday with a jump in Singapore shares, while currencies were
largely subdued, still pressured by the strong U.S. dollar as
markets have scaled back rate cut expectations.
    MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
 rose 0.5%, after a positive start on Monday,
rebounding from a dismal 3.7% drop in the last week due to
heightened Middle East tensions.
    Singapore stocks rose as much as 1.44% to their
highest level in six months, while Malaysian shares
touched their highest level since May 2022 with a 0.5% jump.
    In the Philippine, shares were up as much as 1%, and
Taiwan shares rose as much as 1.5%, while stocks in
Indonesia added as much as 1.3%.
    Currencies in the region remained tepid as hotter than
anticipated U.S. inflation data last week led to markets scaling
back expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts. 
    Markets are currently pricing in a 46% chance of the Fed's
first rate cut starting in September, according to the CME
FedWatch Tool. A few weeks ago, bets were on June for the U.S.
monetary easing cycle to begin.
    Market participants are awaiting U.S. first-quarter gross
domestic product data on Thursday and personal consumption price
expenditures (PCE) index, the Fed's preferred measure of
inflation, on Friday, to further assess the rate-cut outlook.
    "Sharp depreciations in Asian currencies will be a key
factor for (regional) central banks when thinking about when
they're going to cut rates," said Lloyd Chan, FX Strategist at
MUFG.
    The Indonesian rupiah was largely unchanged ahead of
a policy rate decision on Wednesday. The central bank on Friday
intervened in forex markets "more boldly to maintain market
confidence" as the rupiah weakened.
    According to a Reuters poll, Bank Indonesia (BI) will cut
its key interest rate next quarter and again in the fourth
quarter, later than previously expected, as inflation rises and
the rupiah weakens on renewed hawkishness from the Federal
Reserve.
    "I think there's no catalyst at the moment for sustained
strength in the Indonesian rupiah and in terms of rate decisions
by Bank Indonesia our base case is still that BI will keep
policy rates at 6%," MUFG's Chan added.
    Elsewhere, The Malaysian ringgit and the Taiwanese
dollar were largely flat, while the Philppine peso
 inched 0.1% higher.
    The Vietnamese dong was largely unchanged, still near
its lowest level on record touched during last week.
    In Singapore, data showed the key consumer price gauge rose
3.1% in March on a yearly basis, lower than economists'
forecasts.
    The Singapore dollar was largely unchanged.
    
    HIGHLIGHTS:    
    ** Indonesia court rejects election challenges, upholds
Prabowo's win
    ** Thai c.bank could adjust rates if economic outlook
shifts, deputy governor says
    ** Singapore Exchange proposes rule change to help investors
call special meetings
    
 Asia stock                                                         
 indexes and                                                        
 currencies at                                                      
 0508 GMT                                                           
 COUNTRY         FX RIC      FX DAILY   FX       INDEX    STOCKS    STOCKS
                             %            YTD %             DAILY     YTD %
                                                          %         
 Japan                       +0.05      -8.85             +0.46     12.39
 China                       -0.02      -2.04             -0.41     1.92
 India                       +0.03      -0.16             0.34      3.13
 Indonesia                   -0.03      -5.17             0.68      -2.07
 Malaysia                    -0.02      -3.89             0.32      7.56
 Philippines                 +0.12      -3.54             0.93      0.83
 S.Korea                     +0.12      -6.50             -0.03     -1.01
 Singapore                   -0.07      -3.21             1.22      0.75
 Taiwan                      +0.02      -5.81             1.18      9.53
 Thailand                    -0.06      -7.68             0.85      -3.87
 

    
 (Reporting by Ayushman Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim
Coghill)