EMERGING MARKETS-South Korean shares snap 12-day win streak; Indonesia's rupiah at record low

By Nichiket Sunil

Jan 20 (Reuters) - South Korean stocks .KS11 fell on Tuesday, snapping a 12-day winning streak as chipmakers slid on profit-taking, while the Indonesian rupiah hit a record low on concerns over central bank autonomy amid a widening fiscal deficit.

The KOSPI .KS11 closed down 0.4% as Samsung Electronics 005930.KS and SK Hynix 000660.KS each fell more than 2%. The index remains up 16% this year, supported by AI-linked gains.

Taiwan stocks .TWII rose 0.4% to a record close, with TSMC 2330.TW up 0.9%.

Taipei's top negotiator said Taiwan aims to build a "democratic" high-tech supply chain with the U.S. and form an AI partnership, following a tariff deal last week.

In Indonesia, the rupiah IDR= slid to 16,985 per dollar, its weakest point on record, a day after the country's top leader nominated his nephew to join the central bank's board of governors.

Investors have been monitoring the fiscal situation of Southeast Asia's largest economy since the abrupt sacking of the well-respected finance minister, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, in September.

President Prabowo's populist spending measures to boost growth, the nomination of his nephew, and a new burden-sharing agreement between the government and the central bank have aggravated concerns about Bank Indonesia's autonomy.

"The markets have perceived this (nomination) rightly or wrongly to be a potential impact on Bank Indonesia's independence," said Michael Wan, a senior currency analyst at MUFG, adding that combined with rising pressure on Indonesia's fiscal deficit to rise above the current 3% cap, (it) has led to further FX pressure.

Meanwhile, Bank Indonesia is expected to leave its key rate unchanged at 4.75% again on Wednesday, according to a Reuters poll.

Stocks in Jakarta .JKSE traded sideways in afternoon trade, hovering around record levels, while those in Thailand .SETI jumped 1.5% to its highest since early November.

The Malaysian ringgit MYR= traded flat ahead of the central bank's monetary policy meeting on Thursday, where it is expected to keep its overnight policy rate unchanged at 2.75%. The Bank of Japan is expected to raise its growth estimates on Friday and signal interest rate hikes amid recent yen weakening and inflationary pressures.

HIGHLIGHTS:
South Korean economy hardly grew in Q4 as domestic demand weakened

Malaysia's Khazanah to steer more capital to power grids, chip firms, chief says in Davos

South Korea market watchdog says intervention in private equity industry inevitable

Japan bond yields soar as election promises stir fiscal fears