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TOKYO, Apr 12 (Reuters) The Nikkei average fell for a third straight session on Wednesday, dropping 0.92 percent as shares in electronics firms such as Kyocera Corp. tracked losses by their U.S.

counterparts.

Shares in Toshiba Corp. fell after U.S.-based Lexar Media Inc.

said it had filed a trade complaint against the electronics conglomerate for infringement of intellectual property rights In addition to losses in U.S. stocks, which declined on worries that high oil prices will curb corporate and consumer spending, investors were concerned about the pace of the Nikkei's advance in recent weeks, said Takashi Ushio, head of investment strategy at Marusan Securities.

''Some technical indicators show that the market is a little overheated. In addition to that ... you've got higher oil prices.

So I think the market is taking a break at the moment.'' The Nikkei finished the morning down 160.79 points at 17,257.34.

The TOPIX index was down 0.96 percent at 1,753.10.

Electronics components maker Kyocera fell 2.7 percent to 10,630 yen.

Sony Corp. dropped 2.3 percent to 5,440 yen.

Toshiba Corp. declined 2.3 percent to 710 yen after memory card maker Lexar said it had asked a U.S. trade agency to ban imports of some memory chips made by the Japanese company, citing a patent violation.

Sharp Corp. the world's biggest maker of liquid-crystal display televisions, fell 2.9 percent to 2,010 yen.

Shares in Canon Inc. fell 1.3 percent to 8,200 yen.

On the other hand, shares in supermarket York-Benimaru Co. Ltd.

rose 4.5 percent to 4,150 yen.

Seven&I Holdings Co., Asia's second-biggest retailer, said on Tuesday it would make regional affiliate York-Benimaru a wholly owned unit in a $1.25 billion share swap. The terms of the deal would represent a 7.3 percent premium based on York-Benimaru's closing share price on Tuesday.

Shares in Seven&I fell 2.5 percent at 4,720 yen.

WHAT GOES UP...? With the Nikkei having risen some 2,000 points from a low of 15,500 in early March, investors were concerned the index had risen too quickly, said Hiroyuki Nakai, chief strategist at Tokai Tokyo Securities.

''After a rise of 2,000 points over a short term, of course there is going to be concern about overheating,'' he said.

''But I don't think the advance is over yet ... I think there is still a very good chance the Nikkei will see the 18,000 mark.'' Shares in Isuzu Motors Ltd. rose 1.6 percent to 447 yen after General Motors Corp. said late on Tuesday it would sell its 7.9 percent stake in the truck maker for $300 million, unravelling a 35-year equity alliance.

Shares in FamilyMart Co. Ltd. fell 4.7 percent to 3,670 yen, adding to the previous day's 1 percent fall on disappointing earnings results and outlook.

Japan's third-largest convenience store operator on Tuesday posted figures that fell short of the market's consensus for its group net profit for the year ended in February and its group net profit forecast for the current year.

Trade volume rose, with 1.04 billion shares changing hands on the Tokyo exchange's first section. Decliners beat advancers by a ratio of more than 2 to 1.

Reuters KD DB0932