TOKYO, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average

slid for a second day on Wednesday, coming off of record highs

and dragged lower by chip-related companies.

SoftBank Group plunged 8.29% while Advantest ( ADTTF )

, a maker of chip-testing equipment, lost 5.4%.

The losses came after tech-heavy Nasdaq sank in U.S. trading

overnight, with Nvidia ( NVDA ) sliding 3.5%, the biggest drop

in nearly four months.

The Nikkei 225 Index lost 1.1% to 43,047.25 in early

trading. The broader Topix was down 0.2%.

There were 130 advancers on the Nikkei index against 92

decliners.

The Nikkei will likely ease off recent record highs toward

year-end, according to strategists in a Reuters poll.

The index on Tuesday surpassed last week's previous intraday

record to touch 43,876.42. It is forecast to slip back to 42,000

at the end of December, according to the median estimate of 18

analysts polled August 8-18.