* Stocks in South Korea, Taiwan scale record highs

* MSCI EM Asia hits 8-week high

* Jakarta stocks fall after MSCI extends review

* Fitch revises Philippines' outlook to 'negative'

* Central banks in Indonesia and the Philippines to keep

rates unchanged

By Rajasik Mukherjee

April 21 (Reuters) - Equities in Taiwan and South Korea

scaled record peaks on Tuesday, fuelled by AI-related inflows,

while stocks in the Philippines wavered and the peso slipped

after Fitch revised its outlook for the country to "negative" on

growth risks.

Stocks in emerging Asia jumped 1.3% to a

near eight-week high, driven by two major index constituents.

South Korean equities hit a record high for the first

time since the Iran war began, while those in Taiwan,

reached an all-time high. Both were up more than 2%.

An MSCI gauge of global emerging-market stocks was

also at its highest since late February, and just a few points

shy of its record peak.

Investors took heart from reports that Iran was considering

attending peace talks with the United States in Pakistan, even

as an uneasy ceasefire and rhetoric between Tehran and

Washington remained an overhang.

"Markets are currently priced for de-escalation. But any

escalation, particularly military action around Hormuz, could

trigger a renewed spike in oil prices and a broad risk off

move," MUFG analysts wrote.

In the Philippines, stocks erased early gains to

trade flat, while its currency, the peso, inched lower to

59.927 per U.S. dollar.

Credit ratings agency Fitch on Monday revised the

Philippines' outlook to "negative" from "stable", citing risks

to medium-term growth from disrupted public investment and the

country's high exposure to the global energy shock.

"The peso's decline today largely reflects broad dollar

strength and some position adjustment, alongside import-related

dollar demand," said Ruben Carlo Asuncion, chief economist at

Union Bank of the Philippines.

"Fitch's shift to a negative outlook may have added mild

sentiment pressure, but its immediate impact on Philippine

assets appears limited, with markets still more attuned to

global developments," he said.

The Philippine central bank on Thursday is expected to stand

pat on rates as policymakers look past supply-driven price

pressures from a global oil shock, according to a Reuters poll.

Indonesia's rupiah appreciated to as much as 17,100 a

dollar before slipping back to 17,145.

Stocks in Jakarta tumbled to their lowest in six

sessions after global index provider MSCI extended its review of

the stock market by a month to assess reforms announced by

Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

"The extension keeps Indonesian equities in wait-and-see

mode ... market had already priced in caution after MSCI's

January warning, so this mainly prolongs uncertainty rather than

triggering fresh selling," Asuncion said.

Focus now turns to Bank Indonesia's policy meeting on

Wednesday. All of the economists polled by Reuters expect the

central bank to keep its interest rate unchanged, while nearly

two-thirds of them expect no change through the year.

In South Korea, chipmaker SK Hynix climbed as

much as 5.2% to an all-time high, while rival Samsung

Electronics ( SSNLF ) rose as much as 2.6%, leading index

gains on robust export data and optimism ahead of corporate

earnings.

In Taiwan, TSMC, the world's top contract

chipmaker, jumped 2.5%.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** Thailand plans law to borrow $15.6 billion and raise debt

ceiling, deputy PM says

** Apple turns to hardware veteran Ternus as CEO to succeed

Cook in AI age

** BOJ is likely to hold off raising rates in April, sources

say

** India and South Korea plan $50 billion trade push with

new deals

Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0348 GMT

COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY FX INDEX STOCKS STOCKS

% YTD % DAILY YTD %

%

Japan -0.10 -1.45 1.14 18.19

China India Indonesia +0.15 -2.74 -0.89 -12.96

Malaysia -0.10 +2.58 0.54 1.87

Philippine -0.21 -1.89 0.23 -0.38

s

S.Korea Singapore -0.10 +1.15 0.15 7.86

Taiwan Thailand