Asian currencies at multi-week highs on Trump's China comments

• Ringgit at more than 6-week high
• Singapore dollar up 0.5% after c.bank loosens policy
• Dollar eyes worst week since late November

Jan 24 (Reuters) - Currencies in emerging Asian markets jumped on Friday, with the ringgit and rupiah touching multi-week highs, after U.S. President Donald Trump talked of a trade deal rather than tariffs with China, the world's number two economy.

The MSCI gauge of emerging market currencies .MIEM00000CUS rose 0.4% to its highest in seven-weeks, while a gauge of emerging Asian equities .MIMS00000PUS advanced as much as 1% to its highest in more than two weeks.

Trump in an interview with Fox News said his conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week was friendly and he thought he could reach a trade deal with China.

The new U.S. president had put investors on edge after threatening to impose major tariffs of China, but his comments on Friday hinted at a softer stance, triggering a rush to sell the dollar and lifting risk-sensitive assets in emerging markets.

"Trump's holding back on introducing universal tariffs now. Asian currencies could see some scope to strengthen a bit in the short term, in the absence of any immediate tariffs," said Wei Liang Chang, an FX and Credit strategist at DBS Bank.

However, Chang said caution remained: "We are not discounting the fact that tariffs could still be imposed ... but perhaps at a more calibrated pace."

China's yuan CNY=CFXS surged to a 1-1/2-month high against the dollar, while stocks in China .SSEC, .CSI300 gained around 1%.

On the day, Malaysia's ringgit MYR= advanced 0.7% to 4.410 per dollar to a level not seen since early December last year, while Indonesia's rupiah IDR= appreciated 0.5% to touch a two-week high. The Philippine peso PHP= also rose 0.5%.

Singapore's dollar SGD= strengthened 0.5% to 1.349 per dollar, its best level since mid-December, as the city-state's central bank loosened its monetary policy for the first time in five years.

"The move looks to be one that is calculated to be a tad more growth supportive while continuing to hold the reins on inflation," analysts at Maybank said.

"MAS policy continues to be supportive of SGD strength and we look for the resilience to continue even with this easing."

Shivaan Tandon, a markets economist at Capital Economics, expects the central bank to loosen policy again in April given that inflation was likely to remain low and growth sluggish.

"The weakness of economic growth also suggests to us that the central bank could loosen policy further over the rest of the year," Tandon said.

The dollar index =USD fell broadly following Trump's China comments, and was headed for its worst weekly fall in two months with a 1.4% decline.

Also weighing on the dollar were demands from Trump that the Federal Reserve cut interest rates.

In east Asia, the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to their highest since the 2008 global financial crisis. The Nikkei share average .N225 held on to earlier gains and the yen JPY=EBS weathered initial volatility to be little changed.

Equities in emerging Asian markets were largely mixed, with stocks in Malaysia .KLSE, Indonesia .JKSE, and the Philippines .PSI losing between 0.3% and 0.8%. Equities in Singapore .STI were flat, while those in Thailand .SETI edged higher.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** Indonesia's 10-year benchmark yield ID10YT=RR falls 9.8 bps to 6.969% - lowest since mid-December

** Philippines raises $3.3 bln through sale of U.S. and euro bonds

** Yen gains, bond yields rise after BOJ hikes rates