* US dollar strength prevails
* S. Korean won, Philippine peso top laggards
* Asian equities largely weak

By Roushni Nair
       April 15 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian markets were
subdued on Tuesday as rising tensions in the Middle East and a
potential delay in interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal
Reserve kept the dollar buoyant, triggering an aversion to
riskier emerging market assets.  
    The South Korean won, the Philippine peso,
and the Malaysian ringgit eased the most, with each
falling between 0.2% and 0.7% by 0333 GMT. Stocks in Singapore
 and the Philippines lost more than 1%. 
    Market bets on near-term interest rate cuts by the Fed have
declined after data last week showed U.S. consumer prices
increased more than expected in March. The Fed's shift to
hawkish rhetoric in March meeting minutes led investors to price
in a rate cut in September rather than in June.
    That pushed the U.S. dollar nearly 2% higher last week, with
the dollar index - a measure of the greenback against six
major rivals - currently hovering around Friday's high at
105.970.
    In Asia, the Philippines' peso hit its lowest level since
Nov. 2, with the country's inflation basket likely to be the
most sensitive to the recent spike in oil prices, according to
analysts at Barclays.
    "Higher oil prices are generally negative for economic
activity in the region, but our estimates suggest a USD10/bbl
increase in Brent only reduces GDP growth by a relatively modest
0.1-0.2 percentage points (pp) for most of Emerging Asia," the
Barclays note said.
    In Malaysia, the ringgit stood at a near two-month low,
although the country stands out as the only net oil and gas
exporter among the major emerging Asian economies and could be a
beneficiary of higher oil prices. Equities in Kuala Lumpur
 slipped 0.5%. 
    In India - another net importer of oil - the rupee
was largely range-bound with rising oil prices expected to
further pressure the currency. Stocks in Mumbai slipped
0.8%.
    Investors now keenly await the country's wholesale price
index (WPI) data for March due later in the day.
    "We expect WPI-based inflation to remain broadly stable in
the month, with sequential decline in food prices offset by rise
in international crude oil and coal prices," Barclays analysts
said in a separate note. 
    In China, the yuan traded flat while stocks in
Shanghai rose more than 1%.
    The Chinese central bank on Monday kept a key policy
interest rate steady as widely expected when rolling over
maturing medium-term loans.
    Investor focus now shifts to first-quarter gross domestic
product data due on Tuesday for more information on the status
of a recovery in the world's second-largest economy and
Southeast Asia's biggest trading partner. 

    
    
    HIGHLIGHTS:    
    ** Malaysia's palm oil inventories fall to 8-month low
    ** Markets in Indonesia, Thailand closed for public holiday
    ** U.S. earnings disappoint, JPMorgan Chase misses
expectations 
    
    
  Asia stock indexes and                                    
 currencies at 0456 GMT                              
 COUNTRY  FX RIC        FX     FX    INDEX   STOCKS   STOCKS
                     DAILY  YTD %           DAILY %    YTD %
                         %                           
 Japan               -0.34  -8.28             -1.09   17.44
 China                                             
 India               -0.03  -0.28             -0.82     2.78
 Indones                 -  -2.81                 -     0.19
 ia                                                  
 Malaysi             -0.17  -3.87             -0.42     6.18
 a                                                   
 Philipp             -0.28  -2.42             -1.26     1.95
 ines                                                
 S.Korea                                           
 Singapo             +0.13  -2.98             -1.07    -1.79
 re                                                  
 Taiwan              -0.20  -5.02             -1.13    14.34
 Thailan                 -  -6.28                 -    -1.38
 d                                                   
 

    

    
 (Reporting by Roushni Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Jamie
Freed)