Asia EM FX Broadly Weaker Amid Demand For Greenback

The greenback firmed across the board, which underpinned USD/Asia crosses, on the reassessment of Fed tightening outlook. December rate-hike pricing implied by meeting-dated OIS edged higher, while U.S. Tsys cheapened across the curve. The ADXY index extended Wednesday's rout, printing session lows at 98.38.

• CNH: Offshore yuan briefly strengthened after the PBOC set the USD/CNY mid-point 148 pips below the expected level. The resultant downtick in USD/CNH proved short-lived as greenback purchases gained traction.
• KRW: The South Korean won was the worst performer in the region, losing ~1.25% versus the U.S. dollar. Heightened geopolitical tensions may have facilitated won sales, with North Korea resuming its ballistic missile tests. FX markets opened one hour late due to the national college entrance exams in South Korea.
• IDR: The rupiah retreated amid softer commodity prices and ahead of today's monetary policy decision from Bank Indonesia. The central bank is expected to raise the 7-Day Reverse Repo Rate by 50bp, albeit some expect a 25bp hike.
• MYR: Spot USD/MYR advanced as palm oil futures most actively traded in Kuala Lumpur fell below the MYR4,000/MT level and their 50-DMA. Domestic front pages remained dominated by reports surrounding the upcoming general election; Malaysia will observe a public holiday tomorrow, ahead of Saturday's poll.
• PHP: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas effectively preannounced a 75bp rate hike, which is expected to take effect after the scheduled Monetary Board meeting today. The Philippine peso softened, but held a familiar range.
• THB: Baht losses were exacerbated by continued equity outflows. Spot USD/THB saw its RSI return from oversold territory, which is a bullish signal.