Nikkei down 0.6 pct led by high-techs, banks up

(Updates to midsession)

By Taiga Uranaka

TOKYO, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average fell 0.6 percent on Thursday, led by high-tech makers such as Kyocera Corp (6971.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), tracking a sell-off of similar stocks on Wall Street.

At the same time, the downside was seen limited, supported by gains of financial shares such as Mizuho Financial Group Inc (8411.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

"It's natural to see a fall after the Tokyo market rose yesterday on expectations of gains in Wall Street but the bet turned wrong," Tsuyoshi Segawa, equity strategist at Shinko Securities.

"But the market's mood is not bad, as investors are buying on dips amid relatively good turnover."

He said stocks were likely to move within a narrow range in the afternoon session, as trade is expected to be subdued on Wall Street ahead of important U.S. non-farm jobs data.

The benchmark Nikkei .N225 ended the morning session down 100.99 points at 17,098.90. The broader TOPIX index was down 0.3 percent at 1,658.90.

Trade picked up, with 1 billion shares changing hands, compared with last week's morning average of 876.2 million.