SINGAPORE, Feb 7 — All Asian currencies recovered their losses against the US dollar today as a degree of calm returned to the region's equity markets.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was last up 0.8 per cent after rising as much as 2 per cent in early trade.

“Most of the volatility is concentrated in stocks as Asian equity markets followed US stock indices closely. However, the FX and interest rates space has been relatively quiet despite the sharp spike in the VIX (volatility gauge), pointing to a contained fallout in just one asset class,” DBS Group strategists Eugene Leow and Philip Wee said in a note.

“With the rebound in the Dow last night, some semblance of stability has likely been established.”

The US dollar index against a basket of six major currencies was mostly flat at 89.608, edging away from the two-week peak of 90.034 set overnight.

South Korea's won was 0.6 per cent firmer against the US dollar, making it the region's biggest gainer. It had firmed as much as 1.1 per cent earlier today.

South Korea's foreign exchange reserves rose for the third straight month to US$395.75 billion (RM1.54 trillion) at end-January, the central bank said on Monday.

The Taiwan dollar was also among the region's biggest gainers, firming about 0.5 per cent. Taiwan, which is a significant exporter of electronic goods, reports trade data later in the day.

Similarly, the Thai baht firmed about 0.1 per cent and the Malaysian ringgit by 0.2 per cent. Malaysia is also due to issue trade later today.

Malaysian exports are expected to have risen in December at a slower annual pace for a second consecutive month, a Reuters poll projected, reflecting their strong previous performances and lower commodity prices.

The positive sentiment carried across the Strait of Malacca to Indonesia where the rupiah followed suit, albeit not to the same extent.

The Philippine peso strengthened 0.5 per cent while the Philippine Stock Exchange's equity index added as much as 1.8 per cent during the day.

Meanwhile, the Singapore dollar firmed 0.1 per cent today. The city-state is due to report on its foreign exchange reserves later in the day.

Indian rupee

India's rupee was 0.1 per cent stronger ahead of the central bank's rate-setting meeting today, with analysts polled by Reuters expecting no policy change to the Reserve Bank of India's repurchase and reverse repurchase rates.

Chinese yuan

After maintaining an even keel in the face of regional volatility yesterday, the Chinese yuan firmed 0.4 per cent against the US dollar today.

China's central bank lifted its official yuan midpoint to 6.2882 per US dollar today, the strongest level since August 2015. — Reuters