(Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average is expected to test 9,800 for a fourth straight session on Monday as yen weakness against the dollar is likely to boost risk appetite, although some market players say technical indicators point to a correction.

The index has risen above 9,800 in three previous sessions but has so far failed to close above it.

Strategists said the Nikkei was likely to trade between 9,750 to 9,900 on Monday after Nikkei futures in Chicago closed at 9,810, up 50 points or 0.5 percent, from the Osaka close of 9,760.

The softer yen against the dollar is going to prompt buying and we may see the index open above 9,800 and tread recent ranges, but there is a risk of a correction because the market does look overheated, said Hiroichi Nishi, equity general manager at SMBC Nikko Securities.

Orders from foreign brokers before Monday's open showed net sell orders of 4.8 million shares.

Market participants are worried about a sharp pullback after the Nikkei rallied more than 10 percent last month, posting its best February performance in decades.

A domestic trader said the Nikkei's moves this week will depend heavily on futures buying and selling ahead of a closely watched settlement of options and futures on Friday.

On Friday, the benchmark Nikkei <.N225> ended up 0.7 percent at 9,777.03 on Friday, while the broader Topix index <.TOPX> closed 0.8 percent higher at 837.82.

The S&P and Nasdaq notched their eighth week of gains out of the last nine on Friday, although they ended the day lower in a thinly traded session.

The dollar was last trading at 81.60, close to the nine-month peak of 81.86 set on Friday.

Europe's sovereign debt crisis returned to the spotlight after Spain defied the euro zone austerity pact to set a softer 2012 deficit target, while Greece nears its March 9 deadline to conclude its bond swap with private investors.

STOCKS TO WATCH

-- TOKYO ELECTRON

Tokyo Electron said on Monday it would buy Switzerland's Oerlikon Solar, a unit of OC Oerlikon Corp for 22.5 billion yen ($275 million) to expand its thin film solar module business.

-- TEPCO (9501.T)

Tokyo Electric Power Co, also known as Tepco, will seek a 10 percent rise in electricity charges for households as the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plant tries to shore up its finances, the Nikkei business daily said on Sunday.

-- NTT DOCOMO INC (9437.T)

Mobile phone operator NTT Docomo will form a business alliance with Spain's Telefonica S.A. to create an expected 7 billion to 8 billion yen fund by the end of the year that will invest in venture companies, the Nikkei said on Sunday.

--ITOCHU CORP (8001.T)

Trading firm Itochu is seen forming a U.S. partnership to produce and sell ethanol made from non-food resources and targets annual sales of 100 billion yen ($1.2 billion)in 10 years, the Nikkei said on Monday.

--NIPPON STEEL (5401.T), SUMITOMO METAL (5405.T)

Nippon Steel Corp and Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd said on Friday after the close that after their merger, Nippon Steel President Shoji Muneoka will be chairman and CEO.

--TOYOTA (7203.T)

Toyota Motor Corp will have in place by autumn a more resilient supply chain that would recover within two weeks of another massive earthquake hitting Japan, a top executive said.

(Reporting by Mari Saito; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

Earthquake Japan Toyota Settlement