TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei share average jumped nearly 3% on Thursday as chip giants Tokyo Electron and Advantest tracked their US 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 US chip stocks, particularly those of Micron’s, lifted Japanese chip shares,” said Kentaro Hayashi, a senior strategist at Daiwa Securities.

Shares of Micron Technology 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.