SINGAPORE: Most emerging Asian currencies eased on Friday as investors took profits from weekly gains amid Spain's fiscal woes, while the Singapore dollar firmed on a fight between Heineken and a Thai billionaire for a beer-brewer in the city-state. The Thai baht hit an 11-year low against the Singapore dollar on expectations of demand for the city-state's currency related to Thai Beverage plc's bid for Fraser and Neave (F&N) and its affiliated beer maker Asia Pacific Breweries (APB) for S$3.8 billion ($3.03 billion). The Philippine peso underperformed Asian peers as investors took profits and on dollar demand linked to non-deliverable forwards (NDF) fixing, dealers said. Most emerging Asian currencies were set to see weekly gains, helped by growing expectations the US Federal Reserve may take further measures to boost the economy. Regional units are seen benefiting from investors' search for higher yields, although risk aversion amid worries about the euro zone can weaken the currencies anytime, dealers and analysts said. "There is a bit more support for emerging Asian currencies these days as US economic data deteriorates and the market's view for QE3 probability increases," said Sacha Tihanyi, senior currency strategist for Scotiabank in Hong Kong, referring to a possible third round of quantitative easing by the Fed. The slowdown in the US economy persisted into the third quarter as factory activity in the US Mid-Atlantic region contracted in July for a third straight month and new claims for jobless aid surged last week, data showed on Thursday. US home resales also slumped to their lowest level in eight months in June. The ringgit has been the best performing emerging Asian currency so far this week with a 0.9 per cent advance against the dollar, according to Thomson Reuters data. The Malaysian currency found support not only from the policy expectations but also profit-taking from the Singapore dollar's gains versus the neighboring unit, dealers said. Last week, the Singapore dollar hit a 14-year high against the ringgit. "I will probably go with the ringgit. It looks too cheap versus the Singapore dollar," said a European bank dealer in Singapore, when asked which emerging Asian currencies he prefers. Currency market players already increased bullish bets on most emerging Asian currencies, especially the Philippine peso and the Singapore dollar, during the last two weeks, a Reuters poll showed on Thursday. That clearly reflects the growing chase by investors for currencies which have the benefit of growth as well as yield and also those perceived as safe havens, analysts said. SINGAPORE DOLLAR, BAHT The Singapore dollar rose to 25.32281 versus baht, the highest since September 2001, on talk of demand for the city-state's currency linked to Thai Beverage's attempt to buy stakes in F&N and APB. But Heineken NV on Friday launched a S$5.1 billion counter-bid, trumping the surprise offer for the Singapore beer maker by the Thai company controlled by tycoon Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi. The Dutch beermaker's counterattack is expected to further support the Singapore dollar against the euro, although details on funding are not available yet. The city-state's unit stood at 1.5375 versus the single currency, hovering around 1.5339 hit on Thursday, the strongest since July 2001. Investors have been chasing the Singapore dollar against the euro to seek a safe haven amid persistent worries about the euro zone's debt crisis.

Source