The Nikkei closed up 0.68% at 38,283.85 but fell 1.6% for the week.
Broader topics rose 0.51% to 2,696.53 and posted a weekly loss of 1.06%.
“Nvidia’s gains lifted sentiment and investors bought back Japanese stocks,” said Naoki Fujiwara, senior general manager at Shinkin Asset Management.
“And it was time to make active bets after the Nikkei went below 38,000 in the previous session.”
The Nikkei index hit a low of 37,945.21 in intraday trade on Thursday, falling below 38,000 for the first time since November 1. The index closed at its lowest level since October 25.
Wall Street’s major indexes closed higher on Thursday as the blue-chip Dow and S&P 500 hit one-week highs.
Shares of Wall Street’s largest company Nvidia rose 0.5% after the earnings release on Wednesday. The US semiconductor index rose 1.6%.
In Japan, chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron rose 2.16% and chip-testing equipment maker Advancetest rose 0.66%. Chip materials maker Resonac jumped 4.66%.
All but five of the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s 33 industry sub-index rose, with refiners the top performer, up 2.79%.
The auto sector slipped 0.15%, with Toyota Motor down 0.37% and the top-weighted Topix.
The drug sector fell 0.43% and Daiichi Sankyo lost 1.07%.
Of the 225 stocks on the Nikkei, 148 advanced and 74 declined, with three trading flat.
(You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)