TOKYO, June 25 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average

edged higher during the morning session on Tuesday, as investors

shifted focus to value stocks over semiconductor and other

high-tech shares, while a yen on the back foot continued to

support export-related stocks.

The Nikkei was up 0.51% at 39,001.39 by the midday

break, while the broader Topix climbed 1.44% to

2,779.59.

U.S. semiconductor bellwether Nvidia ( NVDA ) slid for a

third session on Monday, while the chip stocks index

finished down 3.02%, dampening investor sentiment toward

artificial intelligence- and chip-related shares during Asian

trading hours.

Disco Corp ( DISPF ) shares declined 5.3% to be the largest

percentage losers, and Tokyo Electron ( TOELF ) fell 2.5% to

single-handedly swipe 86 points off the benchmark index.

AI-focused startup investor SoftBank Group ( SFTBF ) slipped

1.7% to become the second biggest drag.

But a weaker yen continued to support export-related shares

that tend to benefit from a soft domestic currency, which

hovered close to a 34-year low of 160.245 per dollar.

Meanwhile, investors picked up value stocks over their

growth peers, generating widespread gains in the financial

sector to help lift the Nikkei.

Banks added 3.5% to lead sector gains, followed

closely by insurance and securities

firms, both up around 3.3%.

"Nikkei is a more value-oriented market, and investors

may be rebalancing during the approaching quarter-end to gain

exposure to the lagging part of the market," Charu Chanana,

global market strategist and head of FX strategy at Saxo said.

"A selective and bottoms-up approach for Japanese stocks

could be attractive from here as yen appreciation risks escalate

in H2."

Among financial stocks, Daiwa Securities Group ( DSECF )

jumped 4.2%, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group ( MUFG ) gained

4.1%, and Resona Holdings ( RSNHF ) rose about 4%.

Shares of Mizuho Financial Group ( MFG ) were up 3.7%.

In other individual stocks, auto maker and index heavyweight

Toyota Motor ( TM ) rallied 3.8%.

(Reporting by Brigid Riley; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)