SINGAPORE – (UPDATE) Most Asian currencies rose Wednesday as regional equities rose after Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke eased concerns over US banks, saying they should be able to weather the global downturn without being nationalized.

The Philippine peso gained half a percent to 47.98 per dollar in morning trade as authorities pledged to ease money policy and boost government spending to spur growth. The peso closed lower at P48.13.

"I think there is some risk appetite now," said a trader in Manila.

But analysts said the peso's rally could soon run out of steam.

"The country's widening trade deficit has put a weight on the peso," said Thio Chin Loo, currency strategist at BNP Paribas

The Philippines posted a trade deficit of $617 million in December, reversing a $31-billion surplus in November.

Callum Henderson, currency strategist at Standard Chartered Bank, said the peso may fall to P49 if the near-term resistance at P48.15 was cleared.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian rupiah rose almost 0.5 percent to 11,925 per dollar, as traders cited dollar-selling intervention by the central bank to prop up the unit.

The South Korean won gained nearly 1.8 percent to 1,489.9 per dollar at one point in tandem with rising local shares, but it later pared most of its gains to 1517.

Bernanke said the government did not have plans to nationalize major banks for now, remarks that put to ease some worries that some top lenders may need to be taken over because of huge losses due to the global credit crisis.

But the Singapore dollar fell as investors continued to buy the US dollar on the view that Singapore's monetary authorities would let the currency weaken in April to spur growth.

The Singapore dollar lost 0.6 percent to 1.5297 per US dollar while the Malaysian ringgit, which has a closer correlation with the Singapore unit, also fell to 3.671 per dollar.

The dollar/ringgit non-deliverable forwards (NDF) opened lower, with six-month NDF at 3.6595 per dollar as regional stocks rose, but later pushes back up to 3.711.

The NDFs implied a 1.0-percent ringgit fall from the spot rate.

The market largely shrugged off the central bank's interest rate cut late on Tuesday, traders said.

Singapore and Malaysia are seen more vulnerable to the global economic downturn due to their higher dependence on exports.

Exports are equivalent to over 200 percent of gross domestic product in Singapore and about 100 percent in Malaysia.