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

edged up in choppy trade on Wednesday, buoyed by Wall Street

strength overnight, while profit-taking reined in gains as

investors awaited fresh drivers.

The Nikkei was up 0.3% at 38,068.22, by the midday

break, while the broader Topix gained 0.1% to sit at

2,660.55.

The S&P 500 and Dow ended at record highs on Tuesday, as

mining stocks surged following China's announcement of a

sweeping stimulus package, despite initially trimming gains

after an unexpected decline in U.S. consumer confidence in

September.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq also finished up, with the

Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index surging more than 1%

to boost Japanese chip-related shares on Wednesday.

Advantest ( ADTTF ) climbed 4.8% and was the biggest boost to

the Nikkei. Tokyo Electron ( TOELF ) was up 0.4% after gains

narrowed as profit-taking kicked in.

But the dollar/yen trading in a narrow range and analysts

citing a lack of fresh drivers capped gains for the local

stocks.

The market was also ripe for profit-taking after the Nikkei

rallied for a fourth straight session to a three-week closing

high in the previous session, supported by the Bank of Japan's

dovish slant.

"We're in a situation where it's tough to find good material

today," said Kazuo Kamitami, a strategist at Nomura Securities.

However, a strong performance by machinery-related shares

after China's stimulus boost on Tuesday stood out, he added.

Machinery was up 2.5% to lead gains among the

Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry groups.

Daikin Industries ( DKILF ) rose nearly 6% and was among the

top gainers on the Nikkei, just behind electrical equipment

maker Yaskawa Electric Corp ( YASKF ), up 7.8%, and cosmetic firm

Shiseido Co ( SSDOF ), adding 6.4%.

Toyota Motor ( TM ) rose 1.8%, after the automaker bought

back some of its own shares during morning trade.