Japan's Nikkei reverses course to rise as chip shares track South Korea rebound

Japan's Nikkei share average reversed course to end higher on Tuesday, as chip-related stocks tracked a rebound of South Korean shares.

The Nikkei .N225 rose 0.5% to close at 65,856.43, after falling as much as 1.4% earlier in the session. The broader Topix .TOPX gained 0.5% to 4,093.67.

"The Topix traded higher since the open, which meant that money was flowing into Japanese stocks," said Shuji Hosoi, senior strategist at Daiwa Securities.

"Chip-related shares weighed on the Nikkei, and they changed course as South Korea's benchmark reversed its losses," he said.

Shares in South Korea and Japan fell earlier in the session, following Wall Street, as investors continued to sell semiconductor stocks globally ahead of Nvidia's NVDA.O earnings report.

Samsung Electronics 005930.KS erased losses to rise 0.19% and South Korea's benchmark KOSPI .KS11 rose 0.68%.

In Japan, chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron 8035.T and memory chipmaker Kioxia 285A.T gave up losses to rise 0.47% and 0.65%, respectively.

Chip-testing equipment maker Advantest 6857.T narrowed losses to end 0.14% lower.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended lower on Monday, pulled down by technology stocks, as investors weighed fresh U.S. economic sanctions against Iran and braced for a week that also includes a closely watched inflation report.