Nikkei ends flat as weak China data offsets Fed optimism

TOKYO, April 10 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks ended flat in lacklustre trade on Thursday after disappointing China trade data erased early gains made when minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary meeting eased worries over the timing of rate hikes.

Also hurting the market was Toyota Motor Corp, which dropped 2.4 percent and was the second most-traded stock by turnover on concerns that its latest global recall of vehicles will hit earnings.

The Nikkei ended flat at 14,300.12 after trading back and forth into positive and negative territory. Earlier, it rose as high as 14,513.14.

The broader Topix dropped 0.1 percent to 1,149.49 in thin trade, while the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 advanced 0.1 percent to 10,474.75.

(Reporting by Ayai Tomisawa; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Eric Meijer)