Japan's Nikkei rises in choppy trade as chip shares rally

TOKYO, March 10 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei rose in a choppy session on Monday, led by semiconductor-related shares as investors snapped up deals, although uncertainty around U.S. tariff policies limited the index's rise.

The Nikkei .N225 briefly slid to its lowest since September 18 at 36,705.02, but reversed the losses to close 0.4% higher at 37,028.27. The index had closed at a six-month low on Friday.

However, the broader Topix .TOPX finished down 0.3% at 2,700.76.

Chip-testing equipment maker Advantest 6857.T rose 3.7%, offering the biggest lift as Japan's chip-related stocks got a boost from last week's gains in U.S. technology shares.

The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index .SOX surged 3.2% on Friday amid Wall Street gains, with U.S. stocks rebounding from early declines after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the economy was "in a good place." .N

However, global uncertainty continued to weigh on sentiment. In a Fox News interview on Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump declined to rule out the possibility of a recession amid concerns about his tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China.

U.S. stock futures fell during Asian trade, potentially weighing on the Nikkei, while tariff concerns were creating some turbulence in the market, said Nomura Securities strategist Maki Sawada.

"Overall caution towards Trump's tariff policies and retaliatory levies is acting as a drag," contributing to the dip in early trade, she said.

Lasertec 6920.T, which makes inspection equipment used in chip-making, jumped 10% to become the biggest percentage winner on the Nikkei, followed by industrial automation system maker SMC Corp 6273.T, gaining 6.8%.

Among other shares, AI-focused startup investor SoftBank Group 9984.T was up 1.4%, chip-making equipment giant Tokyo Electron 8035.T rose 1.7%, and silicon wafer maker Shin-Etsu Chemical 4063.T added 1.2%.