TOKYO, July 16 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average

rose on Tuesday, tracking gains in Wall Street, as investors

assessed whether an assassination attempt on U.S. presidential

candidate Donald Trump increased his chances of winning the

November elections.

The Nikkei was up 0.51% at 41,399.72 by the midday

break and the broader Topix climbed 0.8% to 2917.04.

Japan's markets were closed on Monday for a public holiday.

U.S. stocks ended higher on Monday as bets of a second Trump

presidency raised hopes of a looser regulatory environment.

"If Trump were to aggressively implement measures like tax

cuts, the stock market is likely to rally," said Masahiro

Ichikawa, chief market strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset

Management.

Those expectations prompted buying in areas such as high

tech and electronic component in Japanese shares on Tuesday, he

said.

Defence-related Mitsubishi Heavy Industries ( MHVYF ) was

among the top gainers with a 6% jump, as speculation of a Trump

win spurred what has been so-called "Trump trades" among

Japanese stocks.

With a Trump administration expected to be less likely to

involve the U.S. in overseas affairs, there's speculation that

Japan may have to strengthen its defences, putting attention on

defence-related shares, Ichikawa said.

Investors were also weighing the growing probability that

the U.S. Federal Reserve will begin cutting its key interest

rate, particularly its impact on dollar/yen.

The yen has suddenly strengthened against the dollar since

Thursday.

While many suspect Tokyo may have intervened to lift the

currency off 38-year lows, market players want more clarity on

the path of the yen, said Masayuki Kubota, chief strategist at

Rakuten Securities.

"The market is trying to determine ... whether this is a

temporary appreciation of the yen and it will weaken again, or

whether the yen's slide is over because the U.S. is about to

begin cutting rates."

In individual stocks, TDK Corp ( TTDKF ) climbed 4.2%, Tokyo

chip-making equipment giant Tokyo Electron ( TOELF ) rose 0.9%,

and SoftBank Group gained 1.1%.

Shares of Kawasaki Heavy Industries ( KWHIF ) advanced 5.4%.