July 15 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian

markets.

A dramatic escalation in U.S. political tension and violence

looms over world markets on Monday after the attempted

assassination of former President Donald Trump on Saturday, with

Asian assets the first to show what the impact - if any - will

be on trading and investing.

If the shooting strengthens Trump's election hopes,

analysts reckon so-called 'Trump-victory trades' could include a

stronger dollar and a steeper U.S. Treasury yield curve. Bitcoin

was up 4% at $60,000 early in Monday's global session.

Even before Saturday's violence, there was no shortage of

meaty issues for investors in Asia to get their teeth into on

Monday - from snowballing U.S. rate cut expectations to

suspected Japanese FX intervention and a deluge of economic data

from China including second quarter GDP.

Last week's surprisingly soft U.S. inflation can keep the

'risk on' flame burning if U.S. bond yields, implied rates and

the dollar all ease. Rates traders expect the Fed to cut rates

by 75 basis points this year, starting in September.

But if that's being driven by weakening growth and a softer

labor market, exuberance will be consumed by caution, especially

with the Q2 U.S. earnings season getting underway.

Asia's calendar on Monday is dominated by the June 'data

dump' from China as Beijing releases house price, industrial

production, urban investment, retail sales, and unemployment

figures for last month, and Q2 GDP.

Analysts and investors have set their expectations low.

Asia's largest economy is expected to have expanded 1.1%

from the January-March period, resulting in year-on-year growth

of 5.1%. Both would be down from prior readings of 1.6% and

5.3%, respectively.

China continues to struggle with a prolonged property crisis

that has curbed investment, soured consumer confidence and

demand, and kept alive the specter of deflation. Trade, bank

lending figures and key money gauges last week darkened the

gloom further.

China's central bank, meanwhile, is widely expected to leave

the interest rate on its one-year medium-term lending facility

loan unchanged at 2.50% on Monday.

Japanese markets are closed for a holiday on Monday but the

yen will be traded across the continent, going into the session

near a four-week high against the U.S. dollar following its rise

on Friday.

Japanese authorities remain tight-lipped on whether they

intervened last week. But the yen's sharp rally and daily Bank

of Japan money market balance projections strongly point to

official action, analysts say.

The yen had languished at 38-year lows around 162.00 per

dollar last week, but goes into Monday around 157.90 per dollar.

Does the short covering rally have more juice in it?

Probably - hedge funds are holding their largest net short yen

position in 17 years, U.S. futures market figures show.

The surging yen triggered a 2.4% slump in Japanese stocks on

Friday, its steepest fall since April. Having hit a record high

above 42,000 points on Thursday, it could have more room to

fall.

Elsewhere in Asia on Monday, India's wholesale price

inflation is seen rising sharply to a 3.5% annual rate in June

from 2.6% in May.

Here are key developments that could provide more direction

to markets on Monday:

- China 'data dump' (June)

- China GDP (Q2)

- India wholesale price inflation (June)