FOREX-Dollar soft, Aussie firms ahead of rate verdict

* USD subdued, Aussie higher ahead of RBA rate decision

* A 25 bps hike priced in, might need more to lift Aussie

* Fed starts two-day meeting, outlook uncertain

By Anirban Nag

SYDNEY, Nov 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar and the yen eased on Tuesday, while the Australian dollar extended gains ahead of a central bank meeting where interest rates are widely expected to be lifted by a quarter of a percentage point.

Trading is expected to be light with a market holiday in Japan. Dealers expect currencies to consolidate after recent volatile moves and ahead of event risks in the form of major central bank meetings which kick off on Tuesday.

The U.S. Federal Reserve starts its two-day meeting on Tuesday and, while it is expected to keep rates unchanged, there is speculation that it might drop or alter its pledge to keep rates low for an "extended period".[nFEDAHEAD].

"We do not expect that to happen, so the dollar should resume its trend downwards to the end of this year," said John Horner, foreign exchange strategist at Deutsche Bank in Sydney.

The dollar index .DXY was down 0.12 percent at 76.207, off a high of 74.411. The euro EUR= inched up to $1.4775, having gained 0.35 percent on Monday, while against the yen it rose to 133.57 yen EURJPY=R, from 133.34 yen.