TOKYO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - The Nikkei share average recouped most of its morning losses to end nearly flat on Friday, with investors avoiding making big bets ahead of a key U.S. jobs report and a three-day weekend in Japan. The Nikkei (.N225) closed 0.03% lower at 28,478.56, while the broader Topix (.TOPX) slipped 0.07%. For the week, the Nikkei dropped 1% after four straight weeks of gains, while the Topix rose about 0.2% in its fifth straight weekly rise. Semiconductor stocks dragged both indexes lower, with Advantest sliding 0.65% and Tokyo Electron (8035.T) declining 0.14%. Uniqlo store operator Fast Retailing (9983.T) shed 0.35%. "It"s a difficult time to take positions, ahead of the U.S. jobs report and a three-day weekend," said a market participant at a domestic securities firm. "There isn"t any strong reason to buy stocks today, after U.S. stocks traded sideways overnight," said a market participant at another domestic securities firm. The S&P 500 (.SPX) ended 0.1% lower on Thursday, ahead of the U.S. non-farm payrolls due later on Friday, which could strengthen Federal Reserve officials" resolve for an early and speedy pace of monetary policy normalisation. Expectations for three quarter-point U.S. rate increases this year have driven Treasury yields to multi-month highs. That lifted shares of banks and other financial institutions in Japan. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306.T) jumped 3.44%. Energy shares also rose, supported by higher crude oil prices. SoftBank Group (9984.T) was the Nikkei"s biggest winner by index points, with a 2.18% rally. The Topix value-share index (.TOPXV) rose 0.52%, compared with a 0.65% slide in the growth-share index (.TOPXG).