* EM stocks down 1.8%, FX flat

* Indonesia completes stock market reforms

* India doubles down on curbing rupee speculation

By Pranav Kashyap

April 2 (Reuters) - Emerging-market assets retreated

sharply after U.S. President Donald Trump shattered hopes for

clarity over the duration of the Middle East conflict, while

investors also turned their attention to Egypt's looming

interest-rate decision.

In a prime-time address, Trump said the U.S. would strike

Iran "extremely hard" within weeks - a marked departure from the

earlier tone struck by both him and Secretary of State Marco

Rubio ahead of the speech.

The shift left investors once again mired in uncertainty

over how, and when, the conflict might draw to a close. Equity

markets across the emerging world, which had rallied strongly in

the previous session, reversed course decisively.

MSCI's emerging markets stocks index slid nearly

2%, wiping out the week's earlier gains and underscoring the

renewed flight from risk.

The Indian rupee was little changed as investors

parsed the Reserve Bank of India's decision to bar banks from

offering rupee non-deliverable forwards to both resident and

non-resident clients. The central bank rate decision is also due

next week.

In Mumbai equities fell more than 1.5%,

swept up in the broader global retreat from riskier assets.

"RBI seems quite serious to follow through on new

regulations to control INR weakness. As such, we think the

chance of relaxation is much lower even as tweaks could still be

possible," said Michael Wan, senior currency analyst at MUFG.

"We think the fundamental flow picture for the rupee still

points towards FX weakness moving forward", he added. "Further

policy changes by RBI and the India government to manage INR

weakness could be likely."

Elsewhere Egypt's pound traded steadily, while stocks

were little changed ahead of the central bank's policy decision.

Policymakers are expected to keep rates on hold, as fears of

inflation rekindled by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran have

disrupted what had been a carefully telegraphed easing cycle - a

reassessment increasingly visible across emerging markets.

In Poland, central banker Przemyslaw Litwiniuk said he did

not expect further rate cuts in the coming months, warning that

if the Iran conflict exerts a sustained inflationary impact,

rate hikes may yet become necessary.

Losses in the zloty were modest, though stocks in

Warsaw fell 1%.

Meanwhile, Vietnam emerged as the latest country seeking to

insulate local markets from the fallout of the Iran conflict.

A Reuters report said authorities were planning measures to

support the stock market, including a proposal to establish a

government-backed stabilisation fund.

Stocks in Ho Chi Minh City were down 0.8%.

In Indonesia, authorities completed stock market reforms

requested by index providers, part of a broader effort to

rebuild investor confidence in Southeast Asia's largest economy.