(Updates at 0600 GMT)

TOKYO, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average

jumped nearly 3% on Thursday as chip giants Tokyo Electron ( TOELF ) and

Advantest ( ADTTF ) tracked their U.S. peers higher and a weaker yen

boosted exporters.

The Nikkei was up 2.79% at 38,925.63, its biggest

daily percentage gain since Sept. 12. The benchmark has risen

for five out of six sessions.

The broader Topix gained 2.66% to 2,721.12.

"Gains in U.S. chip stocks, particularly those of

Micron's, lifted Japanese chip shares," said Kentaro Hayashi, a

senior strategist at Daiwa Securities.

Shares of Micron Technology ( MU ) surged roughly 14% in

after-hours trade on Wednesday after the company forecast

higher-than-expected first-quarter revenue due demand for its

memory chips used in artificial intelligence computing.

The yen fell to a three-week low of 145.04 per

dollar earlier in the session. A weaker yen is seen as a boon

for Japanese exporters as it lifts profits when earnings from

abroad are brought home.

Chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron ( TOELF ) surged

8% and was the biggest boost to the Nikkei. Chip-testing

equipment maker Advantest ( ADTTF ) rose 5.39% and technology

investor SoftBank Group climbed 4.1%.

Sony Group ( SONY ) rose 3.38%.

Nitori ( NCLTF ), a home interior goods retailer that relies

on imports for most materials and tends to move along with the

yen, fell 0.6%.

Meanwhile, minutes from the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) July

policy meeting were not hawkish, boosting investor sentiment,

said Hayashi.

The minutes showed that BOJ policymakers were divided on how

quickly the central bank should raise interest rates further,

highlighting uncertainty on the timing of the next increase in

borrowing costs.

At the July meeting, the BOJ unexpectedly raised short-term

interest rates to 0.25% by a 7-2 vote, taking another step

towards phasing out a decade of huge stimulus.

Of the more than 1,600 stocks trading on the Tokyo Stock

Exchange's prime market, 96% rose and 3% fell on the day.