dlr 32.898/ 619 / +3.1

16:31 22Jun09 RTRS-Taiwan dlr eases ahead of Fed meet; stocks offset
* Market awaits Fed committee comment on economic outlook
* Foreign funds buy Taiwan stocks, which gain 1.77 pct
* Taiwan dollar seen rangebound on limited investor appetite
(Updates to close)
TAIPEI, June 22 (Reuters) - The Taiwan dollar eased in light trade on Monday as the U.S. dollar gained against other currencies ahead of fresh U.S. economic news, but gains in local stocks kept losses in check.
The Taiwan dollar closed at T$32.898 to the U.S. dollar, off Friday's one-week closing high of T$32.878.
Volume on the main Taipei Forex Inc. exchange was a light $619 million, but slightly up from $599 million on Friday.
"The U.S. dollar was up a bit over European and Asian currencies," a dealer in Taipei said. "But the Taiwan dollar was stable because stocks were pretty strong.
The euro and the Swiss franc slipped against the U.S. dollar on Monday, while the Indonesian rupiah led emerging Asian currencies lower as risk appetite waned ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate meeting this week. [ID:nTP108242]
The Fed Open Market Committee is due to meet on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the market is waiting to see what it says about the economic outlook and a rise in Treasury debt yields, and whether it makes any move to expand or extend its debt buyback programme. [ID:nN19521340]
Taiwan stocks <.TWII> gained 1.77 percent, helping to stabilise the local currency. Foreign funds were net buyers, uploading T$3.13 billion ($100 million) into Taiwan shares.
Investors are also hanging back as they seek new developments in Taiwan's fast-improving commercial ties with economic powerhouse China, said Mitul Kotecha, head of global currency research with Calyon in Hong Kong.
Taiwan exporters and oil traders were also seen in the market on Monday, but transaction volumes were small.
The Taiwan dollar is expected to be rangebound throughout the week amid low volumes, but could strengthen next week as exporters buy the local currency en masse to meet cash needs at home before the end of the month, dealers in Taipei said.
On the smaller Cosmos exchange , the Taiwan dollar closed flat at Friday's close of T$32.880.
(Reporting by Ralph Jennings and Rachel Lee; Editing by Chris Lewis) ((gina.chang@thomsonreuters.com; +886 2 2508-0815; Reuters Messaging:gina.chang.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.com)) ((If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)) Keywords: MARKETS TAIWAN CURRENCY/


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Monday, 22 June 2009 16:31:05RTRS [nTP105498] {EN}ENDS