(Updates prices after BOJ policy decision)

By Kevin Buckland

TOKYO, May 1 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average

rose on Thursday after the Bank of Japan refrained from raising

interest rates, as widely expected, while investors awaited

developments in U.S. trade talks with Tokyo's top negotiator in

Washington.

The Nikkei was up about 0.6% at 36,248.94, as of

0334 GMT, shortly after the start of the afternoon session. The

BOJ's policy announcement came when the market was shut for the

midday recess.

The broader Topix was up 0.2%.

The tech-heavy Nikkei was buoyed by chip-testing equipment

maker Advantest's ( ADTTF ) 5.9% jump, as it tracked after-hours

advances for U.S. tech megacaps Meta Platforms ( META ) and

Microsoft ( MSFT ) on strong financial results.

The BOJ kept the benchmark rate at 0.5%, and cut forecasts

for growth and inflation against a backdrop of aggressive U.S.

tariffs.

"Without a significant easing of U.S. tariff policy, we

expect the BOJ will maintain the current policy rate this year

and in 2026, before raising the policy rate to 0.75% only in

2027," said Norihiro Yamaguchi, an economist at Oxford

Economics.

Investors will be watching for additional details on the

central bank's thinking when BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda holds a

news conference at 0630 GMT.

Notably, shipping shares as a group were the

worst performers among the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry

groupings, dropping 1.8% amid ongoing global trade uncertainty.

Later in the day, Japanese economy minister Ryosei Akazawa

is likely to hold his second round of talks on a tariff deal.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that deals

with Japan, South Korea and India might be close.

"Any progress in these negotiations, and although it will be

little by little, we should see calm return to Japanese

equities, and the Nikkei could recover to the 37,000 level,"

said Wataru Akiyama, a strategist at Nomura Securities.