* Tokyo Electric falls to all-time low
* Post-quake rebound has run its course -analyst
* Chipmakers lower, in line with U.S. peers
By Chikafumi Hodo and Antoni Slodkowski
TOKYO, April 5 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average slipped on Tuesday with the mood soured by Tokyo Electric Power's fall to an all-time low, but was set to stick to a tight range for a third day as a post-quake rebound looks to have run its course.
The Nikkei's climb over the previous two sessions brought it close to its 200-day moving average at 9,822 but that level and the 9,800 line proved to be stiff resistance for a market still troubled by uncertainty over the exact impact of the massive earthquake on March 11.
Blurring the picture further, shares of Tokyo Electric Power fell more than 14 percent to 380 yen and below their all-time low of 393 yen hit in 1951, due to worries over a prolonged safety crisis at its stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
"There was a sharp drop in the Nikkei and we've seen a swift rebound. That's normal. But from now on people will start pricing in fundamentals and that will push the market gradually lower, so we'll see more moves like today in the coming weeks," said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.
Fujito said that foreign investors are turning away from Japan to emerging markets such as India, Indonesia or Korea.
Foreign investors bought nearly 3 trillion yen ($35.7 billion) of Japan shares from November to March, including buying during dips after the panic post-quake sell-off, but are now looking to lighten their holdings especially in domestic-demand related sectors such as real estate and department stores, analysts said.
Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper said on Tuesday that Tokyo Electric planned to start paying compensation to those who had to evacuate or suffered other losses due to the nuclear power crisis before damages have been assessed, although the utility said nothing had been decided on compensation payouts. [ID:nL3E7F434Q]
"If we think about all the people and businesses affected by the (nuclear) accident, and the compensation that would have to be paid, there's no way shareholders could be fully protected," said Fujito.
Although the Nikkei has recovered more than two-thirds of the ground lost during its steep tumble in the aftermath of the March 11 quake and tsunami, the Nikkei remains more than 7 percent below its pre-quake levels and market players say the rapid rebound has likely run its course.
Chipmakers such as Elpida Memory Inc slipped after the Philadelphia semiconductor index fell 0.9 percent and Nomura Securities maintained a neutral view on semiconductor stocks, citing weakened demand, peak gross margins and higher capital spending in the sector.
Elpida fell 4.5 percent to 1,065 yen. ($1 = 84.040 Japanese Yen) (Reporting by Antoni Slodkowski; Editing by Edmund Klamann)