PRECIOUS-Gold steady on physical buying; China data supports

* China economy growth quickens, inflation eases

* Gold to fall to $1,349 - technicals

* Coming up: U.S. initial claims, weekly; 1330 GMT (Adds graphics, China inflation outlook; updates prices)

By Rujun Shen

SINGAPORE, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Spot gold prices were steady on Thursday, after three days of consecutive gains, as physical buying in Asia continued, while data from China showing a higher-than-expected inflation number supported sentiment.

But the decline in holdings in physically backed exchange-traded funds signalled a shift in investor interest from gold and silver to riskier assets such as stocks amid a brighter economic outlook.

China finished 2010 with a bang, its growth soaring past expectations while inflation slowed less than expected, numbers that could prod the government to step up its tightening measures.

Beijing expected inflation pressure to remain high in the first quarter due to imported inflation.

"The market is divided between whether to get out of it due to risk appetite abating, or whether to get into it due to the inflation concern in China rising," said Jonathan Barrat, managing director of Commodity Broking Services. "So it (data) is very supportive of gold prices.

Spot gold lost $2.25 at $1,367.8 an ounce by 0551 GMT. U.S. gold edged down 0.2 percent at $1,367.6.

Holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, continued to decline. It fell to 1,251.433 tonnes by Jan 19, its lowest since May 2010.

IShares Silver Trust, the world's largest silver ETF, also pared holdings to 10,575.32 tonnes, its lowest in more than two months. Holdings in the fund had been falling continuously this month, down more than three percent so far.

Asian stocks retreated from two-month highs and the euro was hit by a bout of profit-taking on Thursday, felled by a disappointing earnings from Wall Street heavyweights.

"Buying from the physical side is supporting the market for the time being," said Ronald Leung, a physical dealer at Lee Cheong Gold Dealers based in Hong Kong.

"But the unwinding of ETF positions is pressuring gold prices. In the short term, gold is probably going to trade in the range between $1,350 and $1,400."

The dollar index held steady, as the euro rally took a breather.

Spot gold is heading towards $1,349, as a minor rebound has been completed at Wednesday's high of $1,378.81, said Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst.

Spot platinum inched down 0.3 percent to $1,825.24, off the 30-month high of $1,845.5 hit on Wednesday.

Spot palladium lost 0.4 percent at $808.47, after hitting $825.5 in the previous session, its highest since March 2001.

Precious metals prices 0551 GMT Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover Spot Gold 1367.80 -2.25 -0.16 -3.64 Spot Silver 28.68 -0.08 -0.28 -7.06 Spot Platinum 1825.24 -5.75 -0.31 3.27 Spot Palladium 808.47 -3.50 -0.43 1.12 TOCOM Gold 3625.00 -22.00 -0.60 -2.79 37556 TOCOM Platinum 4879.00 -55.00 -1.11 3.90 10899 TOCOM Silver 75.80 -1.70 -2.19 -6.42 5112 TOCOM Palladium 2144.00 -30.00 -1.38 2.24 505 Euro/Dollar 1.3458 Dollar/Yen 82.11 TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce. (Editing by Himani Sarkar)

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