CEE MARKETS-FX rebounds after Trump delays Iran strikes

WARSAW, March 23 (Reuters) - Central European currencies reversed course from early losses at midday on Monday, with the Hungarian forint leading gains, as U.S. President Donald Trump said he would postpone any strikes against Iranian energy infrastructure for five days.

The region's currencies had weakened earlier on Monday as Trump's ultimatum for Iran to allow shipping through the Strait of Hormuz or suffer attacks to its power plants was perceived by markets as an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, strengthening risk aversion and demand for the safe-haven dollar.

The postponement of the attack resulted in a surge in riskier assets and a drop in crude oil prices.

"The whole market, globally speaking, (rose) after the announcement that it seems the U.S. is just delaying the expected hit against Iran's energy infrastructure... and possibly this kind of news created some kind of global optimism," ING senior economist Peter Virovacz said.

"The zloty, the Czech crown, and also the Hungarian forint strengthened, so obviously this is some kind of sentiment move based on the news regarding... some de-escalation or at least avoidance of a further really strong escalation in the Middle East conflict."

The Hungarian forint EURHUF= led gains, rising 1% to 389 per euro by 1135 GMT on Monday.

The Polish zloty EURPLN= strengthened by 0.3% to 4.2620, while the Czech crown EURCZK= gained 0.3% to 24.4300 per euro.

Stock markets in the region also recovered losses. The main Warsaw index .WIG20 rose 1% after losing as much as 3.3% before Trump's announcement.