Aug 21 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian

markets.

Interest rate decisions in Thailand and Indonesia top the Asian

calendar on Wednesday, as investors put the recent rebound

across many markets on hold and look ahead to a keynote speech

from U.S. Fed chief Jerome Powell later in the week.

The global equity market picture going into Wednesday

appears to be one of consolidation, while U.S. Treasury yields

are retreating once again and the dollar is printing fresh lows

for the year.

Fed Governor Michelle Bowman, one of the most hawkish U.S.

rate-setters, on Tuesday repeated that she sees upside risks to

inflation and is cautious about cutting rates. But traders are

increasingly confident the easing cycle will begin next month,

and are putting a 30% probability on the Fed kicking it off with

a half percentage point cut.

The two-year Treasury yield is back below 4.00% and the

dollar index is down 3% this month. This is supportive of Asian

and emerging markets - MSCI's emerging market currency index on

Tuesday hit a fresh record high.

Taking advantage of the dollar's weakness, the Chinese yuan

posted its biggest one-day rise this year at the central bank's

daily fixing on Tuesday. In the spot market, the yuan registered

its strongest close since Jan. 2.

Asia's calendar on Wednesday also includes Japanese trade

figures and South Korean producer price inflation, but the focus

will be on Bangkok and Jakarta.

The Bank of Thailand will keep its one-day repo rate

unchanged at 2.50% and through the first quarter of next year,

according to a Reuters poll, as policymakers balance growth,

inflation and ongoing political instability.

Rates traders are more dovish though, attaching a roughly

80% probability to a quarter-point cut in December. Inflation is

running below target and the government has repeatedly called

for interest rates to be cut, but central bank governor Sethaput

Suthiwartnarueput has so far resisted.

Figures on Tuesday showed that the Thai economy expanded in

the second quarter faster than economists had expected, with

annual growth reaching 2.3% against estimates of 2.1%. First

quarter growth was revised up too.

Bank Indonesia, meanwhile, is also widely expected to keep

its benchmark seven-day repo rate on hold at 6.25%, then cut

borrowing costs in the fourth quarter after the Fed's easing

cycle gets underway, according to a Reuters poll.

Annual inflation is barely 2.00%, the lowest in two and a

half years, but policymakers are wary that easing policy too

soon could weigh heavily on the rupiah.

Asian currencies are generally weaker against the dollar so

far this year but have recovered most of these losses in recent

weeks. The Thai baht is even up slightly year to date.

Here are key developments that could provide more direction

to Asian markets on Wednesday:

- Thailand interest rate decision

- Indonesia interest rate decision

- Japan trade (July)