EMERGING MARKETS-EM stocks index rises on South Korea chip rally; currencies hit by Fed hike fears

* South Korea's KOSPI crosses 9,000 pts for first time

* Bank Indonesia raises benchmark rate to 5.75%

* Taiwan's cenbank holds rate at 2% as expected

By Avinash P and Ragini Mathur

June 18 (Reuters) - An index tracking emerging-market equities edged higher on Thursday, and heavyweight South Korean stocks hit a record, as sentiment improved after the presidents of the United States and Iran signed a peace deal.

Hopes rose for a quick reopening of the crucial Strait of Hormuz waterway as Washington and Tehran released the text of their interim pact. Brent crude futures fell more than 2%, soothing fears of energy-market disruption and inflation.

MSCI's emerging-market equities index rose 0.2%, but kept within reach of its June 3 record high.

South Korea's KOSPI jumped 2.3%, crossing the 9,000-point mark for the first time and extending gains for a sixth straight session in its longest winning streak since February.

Chipmakers SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics (SSNLF) jumped 6.5% and 4.6%, respectively. They have been major drivers of gains on the index, which has more than doubled in value this year.

Taiwan's benchmark rose 1.3% and its currency firmed against the dollar. The central bank kept its benchmark interest rates at 2%, as expected.

HAWKISH FED TONE LIFTS U.S. DOLLAR, PRESSURES EM FX

The U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged in Kevin Warsh's first policy meeting as chair, as expected, despite inflation that is well above target.

Still, the central bank struck a hawkish tone, with policymakers' projections pointing to a rate hike this year.

That pushed the dollar to a more than two-month high, as the prospect of higher U.S. rates increased its yield appeal.

"Assuming the ceasefire takes full effect, many currencies around the world can look for further relief, even if the Fed's stance has now raised the bar for performance," said Geoff Yu, EMEA macro strategist at BNY.

But, he added, "For affected central banks, changing policy stances so early into a relief rally risks pushing financial conditions excessively low in a dollar ascendancy phase and re-introducing inflation or exchange rate risk."

Emerging market currencies felt the pressure with MSCI's currency gauge falling 0.5%.

Indonesia's central bank raised its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 5.75%, just a week after a surprise off-cycle hike, moving again to support the battered rupiah, one of the year's worst-performing emerging-market currencies.

The rupiah edged 0.2% higher, while domestic stocks fell 0.8%.

On the flip side, the Indian rupee appreciated 0.3%, touching its strongest in six weeks against the dollar, as it chased a fifth straight day of gains.

In South Africa, the rand was flat, while the benchmark stock index fell 1.5%.

Currencies in central Europe were mostly subdued. Equities were mixed, Polish and Hungarian stocks declined 1.1% and 0.4%, respectively, while the Romanian benchmark rose 0.9%.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** India's central bank not in favour of offshore settlement for sovereign bonds, sources say

** South Korea market watchdog warns on leveraged stock investments

** Philippine central bank raises policy rate by 25 basis points, as expected

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For RUSSIAN market report, see (Reporting by Avinash P and Ragini Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)