*

Asian stocks stutter after Wall Street falls sharply

overnight

*

Worries over tariffs, trade and geopolitics dent sentiment

*

Euro near five-month high after Germany passes debt

overhaul

*

Yen steadies after BOJ stands pat on rates as expected

*

Futures point to sedate start to the session in Europe

(Updates to Asia afternoon)

By Ankur Banerjee

SINGAPORE, March 19 (Reuters) - Asian stocks were

subdued on Wednesday and gold hovered near record highs as

economic worries and a shifting geopolitical landscape kept risk

appetite in check, while the yen was slightly weaker after the

Bank of Japan held rates as expected.

Investor focus will now be on Governor Kazuo Ueda's

post-meeting press conference at 0630 GMT as well as the Federal

Reserve's policy decision later on Wednesday, where the U.S.

central bank is also expected to hold rates steady.

The listless mood looks set to continue in Europe, with

EUROSTOXX 50 futures 0.11% higher and DAX futures

little changed.

The yen was last at 149.79 per dollar, a tad

weaker on the day as policymakers sought to spend more time

gauging how mounting economic risks from higher U.S. tariffs

could affect Japan's fragile recovery.

Rising odds of the Japanese central bank raising interest

rates have helped push the yen 5% higher against the dollar so

far this year, with it touching a five-month high of 146.545 per

dollar last week. Japan's Nikkei was flat.

Having just raised interest rates in January, the BOJ board

voted unanimously to maintain the bank's short-term policy rate

at 0.5% at a two-day meeting that ended on Wednesday.

Traders will parse Ueda's comments for clues on how soon the

BOJ could next raise rates, a decision complicated by the

contrast between benign domestic data and uncertainty caused by

U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies.

"In the end, however, it is a question of 'when' not 'if'

the BOJ will hike again," said Fred Neumann, chief Asia

economist at HSBC.

"The next move could come as early as June, as more evidence

of wage increases trickles in. The uncertain global trade

outlook, however, could even push the next BOJ rate hike well

into the second half of 2025."

The euro eased a bit but was close to the

five-month high it reached on Tuesday after Germany's parliament

approved plans for a significant increase in spending, handing

conservative leader and the Chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz

a huge boost. It last fetched $1.093175.

Geopolitical tensions escalated as Israeli airstrikes

pounded Gaza and killed more than 400 people on Tuesday,

shattering nearly two months of relative calm since a ceasefire

began, unnerving investors.

Adding to the unease, Russian President Vladimir Putin

agreed to temporarily stop attacking Ukrainian energy facilities

but refrained from endorsing a full 30-day ceasefire.

That left investor sentiment fragile and market moves muted,

with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan

down 0.27%.

Indonesian shares swung between gains and losses in

choppy trading on Wednesday, a day after the stock market there

clocked its sharpest fall in nearly three years on Tuesday, on

concerns over the government's fiscal strategy.

U.S. stocks fell sharply on Tuesday as investors exercised

caution ahead of a monetary policy decision from the Federal

Reserve, while gauging the potential impact of Trump's tariff

policies.

"There's a lot of uncertainty around tariffs, geopolitics

and U.S. economic activity," said Ben Bennett, Asia-Pacific

investment strategist at Legal & General Investment Management.

"Investors are waiting for direction from the Fed tonight

and then President Trump in the coming days."

FED UP NEXT

The BOJ's decision came hours before the policy decision

from the Fed, where the focus will be on new economic

projections from policymakers as well as comments from Fed Chair

Jerome Powell.

The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency

against six rivals, was steady at 103.34, hovering near the

five-month low it touched in the previous session.

"The Fed, just like the market, desperately needs some

visibility on trade, tariffs and overall policies," said Julien

Lafargue, chief market strategist at Barclays Private Bank and

Wealth Management.

"We expect Powell to avoid ifs and buts and instead continue

to advocate for a data-dependent approach."

Traders are pricing in 58 basis points of easing this year

from the Fed, with the first cut fully priced in for July, LSEG

data showed.

In commodities, Brent crude futures eased 0.5% to

$70.2 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude

slipped 0.54% to $66.53.

Gold prices rose to record high of $3,045.24 per ounce on

Wednesday as geopolitical jitters led to safe-haven flows.

(Reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Singapore; Editing by

Jacqueline Wong, Jamie Freed and Lincoln Feast.)