(Updates prices. For midday report, double-clickID:nL3N0LI14R ) By Jongwoo Cheon SINGAPORE, Feb 13 (Reuters) - The Indonesian rupiah hit its strongest in more than two months on Thursday on bond inflows and expectations that the country's current-account deficit will shrink this year, while most emerging Asian currencies slid. The rupiahIDR=ID rose as much as 1.0 percent to 11,965 per dollar, its strongest since Dec. 10 as foreign banks bought the currency and government bond yields fell. Its one-month non-deliverable forwards (NDFs)IDR1MNDFOR= also advanced to 11,855 to the greenback, its highest since Jan. 14. Bank Indonesia said the country's current-account deficit narrowed to 1.98 percent of gross domestic product in the fourth quarter of last year, compared with initial estimates of below 3 percent.ID:nL3N0LH3LE The current-account deficit could shrink to 2.5 percent or lower this year, the central bank said, compared with an estimated 3.5 percent last year. The central bank also said it remained vigilant to inflation risks, while keeping interest rates on hold, as widely expected.ID:nJ9N0IR01H ID:nJ9N0IR01C "The trend certainly appears to be improving. The rupiah versus something else in Southeast Asia like the ringgit or the peso could work," said Jonathan Cavenagh, senior FX strategist with Westpac in Singapore, referring to the Philippine peso. "The key question is 'will the trend improvement in the current account be improved into the first quarter of this year.'" The Indonesian currencyIDRMYR=R rose 0.8 percent to 0.2770 to the ringgit, well above a 100-day moving average. The Indonesian currency has been lower than the average since August. The rupiah's one-month NDFs to the dollar could test a 100-day moving average of 11,728, Cavenagh added. Sentiment on the rupiah became almost neutral in the last two weeks, its best in nearly 18 months, a Reuters poll showed earlier.ID:nL3N0LI1T8 The rupiah has risen 1.5 percent against the dollar, taking the top spot in emerging Asian currencies, according to Thomson Reuters data. It was the worst performing Asian currency last year due to concerns over the country's current-account deficit and inflation. Most emerging Asian currencies eased on Thursday as investors took profit, tracking a soft Australian dollar after the country's surprisingly weak jobs data hurt the outlook on global growth. South Korea's wonKRW=KFTC fell on dollar demand from offshore funds and local importers. The Indian rupeeINR=D2 slid on dollar-short covering. The Singapore dollarSGD=D3 weakened as local investors unloaded the city-state's currency. CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR Change on the day at 0855 GMT Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move Japan yen 102.11 102.54 +0.42 Sing dlr 1.2668 1.2658 -0.08 Taiwan dlr 30.380 30.346 -0.11 Korean won 1066.20 1062.40 -0.36 Baht 32.57 32.56 -0.03 Peso 44.86 44.83 -0.07 Rupiah 11980.00 12080.00 +0.83 Rupee 62.34 62.09 -0.39 Ringgit 3.3220 3.3235 +0.05 Yuan 6.0636 6.0624 -0.02 Change so far in 2014 Currency Latest bid End prev year Pct Move Japan yen 102.11 105.28 +3.10 Sing dlr 1.2668 1.2632 -0.28 Taiwan dlr 30.380 29.950 -1.42 Korean won 1066.20 1055.40 -1.01 Baht 32.57 32.86 +0.89 Peso 44.86 44.40 -1.04 Rupiah 11980.00 12160.00 +1.50 Rupee 62.34 61.80 -0.86 Ringgit 3.3220 3.2755 -1.40 Yuan 6.0636 6.0539 -0.16 (Editing by Jacqueline Wong) ((jongwoo.cheon@thomsonreuters.com)(+65 6870-3841)(Reuters Messaging: jongwoo.cheon.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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