TOKYO, Oct 11 (Reuters) -

Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Friday, buoyed by index

heavyweight Fast Retailing ( FRCOF ) and major semiconductor-related

shares, while investors awaited another round of domestic

companies earnings reports.

The Nikkei rose 0.6% to 39,612.82 by the midday

break after touching its highest intraday trading level in two

weeks at 39,662.42. The index is on track for a more than 2%

gain for the week.

The broader Topix was up 0.2% at 2,718.03.

Fast Retailing ( FRCOF ) offered the biggest lift to the

Nikkei, rising 3.8% to contribute more than half of the

benchmark index's 231.93-point gain.

The owner of clothing brand Uniqlo announced on Thursday

after the market close that it booked a third year of record

profits on widened profit margins in its international segments.

Despite a dip in the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index

overnight along with Wall Street's three main indexes,

Japan's chip-related shares brushed aside the losses to track

U.S. chip star Nvidia ( NVDA ) higher.

"It seems like Nvidia ( NVDA ) had a bigger impact, at

least psychologically," said Kazuo Kamitani, a strategist at

Nomura Securities.

Chip-testing equipment maker Advantest ( ADTTF ), which

counts Nvidia ( NVDA ) among its customers, rose 2.4%, along with

chip-making equipment giant Tokyo Electron ( TOELF ), up 0.6%.

With Japan's markets closed for a public holiday on Monday

and investors eying a slew of company revenue results on Friday

and Tuesday, the index struggled to rise closer to the

40,000-point range.

Nomura's Kamitani said it is likely the Nikkei will hover

around its current level as investors position ahead of the long

weekend.

Among individual shares on Friday, Seven & I Holdings ( SVNDF )

declined 4.7% to lead percentage losers on the Nikkei.

The retailer announced on Thursday a roadmap to hive off

underperforming businesses and focus on its convenience store

operations, as it aims to fend off a $47-billion takeover bid

from Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard ( ANCTF ).