FOREX-Yen holds firm, strong China data boosts Aussie

* China data underlines strong growth momentum, boosts Aussie

* Yen supported by talk of repatriation flows

* Euro, pound subdued on fiscal worries

By Satomi Noguchi

TOKYO, March 10 (Reuters) - The yen held firm on Wednesday on expectations of a pick up in Japanese repatriation flows before the end of the financial year, while the Australian dollar was boosted by strong Chinese trade data.

Traders said Japanese exporters have sold the euro and the dollar this week, repatriating some of their overseas earnings in the run-up to the fiscal year-end on March 31.

But yen gains were limited by speculation that the Bank of Japan may take additional steps to ease monetary policy as it remains under government pressure to help pull the country out of grinding deflation.

Data showed on Wednesday that Chinese exports and imports surged past expectations in February, underscoring the strong momentum in the world's third-largest economy. [ID:nTOE62906P]

Commodity-linked currencies rose after the release of the Chinese economic report, with the Australian dollar climbing to a seven-week high against the U.S. dollar.

"Investors bought the Aussie, thinking the Australian economy will continue to grow as it should benefit from a robust growth in China, Australia's biggest trade partner," said Tsutomu Soma, senior manager of the foreign securities department at Okasan Securities.

The Australian dollar rose as far as $0.9164 <AUD=D4>, its highest since Jan. 20, according to Reuters data. It then, slipped back to $0.9157, up 0.1 percent on the day. Some traders said stops were lined up at $0.9180.

The dollar <JPY=> was steady around 90 yen, having lost over 0.3 percent on Tuesday. Support for the greenback is seen around the 89.30 yen level, which forms the base of the Ichimoku cloud.

The euro also drifted sideways around 122.40 <EURJPY=R>, having lost nearly 0.6 percent on Tuesday.

The BOJ is likely to debate easing its ultra-loose monetary policy again at its board meeting on March 16-17, after introducing a new funding operation in December under a previous wave of government pressure as the yen climbed versus the dollar. [ID:nTOE6230A7]

After the BOJ adopted a new fund-supply operation in December in the wake of the yen's climb to a 14-year high of 84.82 yen, the Japanese currency fell as far as 93.78 yen against the dollar in early January. But it later resumed rising, advancing as much as 88.14 yen last week.

"The biggest risk for the yen is that the BOJ offers nothing new at the end of its meeting next week. That could send the yen higher on disappointment," said the sales trader at a Japanese bank.

The New Zealand dollar <NZD=D4> rose 0.5 percent to $0.7064, after striking a three-week high at $0.7069 on the Chinese trade data.

The euro and the pound were subdued on fresh worries about Europe's fiscal health. The euro <EUR=> eased 0.1 percent against the U.S. dollar, trading around $1.3590.

The common currency had come under fresh pressure after the Fitch ratings agency said it still has a negative outlook on Portugal's credit rating. [ID:nLDE6281JZ]

That fed concerns that peripheral euro zone economies may face debt problems similar to those of Greece, where a fiscal crisis has led investors to flee the euro in past weeks.

The pound <GBP=D4> was struggling below $1.5000, having been hit by weak data, and fears around Britain's sovereign rating as well as the credit ratings of its banks.

Sterling has lost more than 7 percent this year on concerns Britain will be stuck in political deadlock after the May election. (Additional Reporting by Anirban Nag in Sydney and Rika Otsuka in Tokyo; Editing by Joseph Radford)