Nikkei flat before Fed, Fast Retailing gains

* Trade lacks direction ahead of FOMC, ECB -analyst

* Furukawa Electric jumps after revising up forecast

TOKYO, Nov 4 (Reuters) - The Nikkei average was flat on Wednesday, with Fast Retailing (9983.T: Quote, Profile, Research) climbing on a surge in sales at its Uniqlo clothing stores but some exporters losing ground amid caution before a Federal Reserve statement on interest rates and the economy.

Furukawa Electric (5801.T: Quote, Profile, Research) jumped after revising its net forecast to a profit for the April-September first half, citing a recovery in demand for electronics and auto parts as well as cost-cutting.

"There's a sense of relief in the market after some U.S. economic indicators such as ISM beat expectations during a market holiday in Tokyo," said Yumi Nishimura, deputy general manager at Daiwa Securities SMBC.

The factory gauge from the Institute for Supply Management on Monday pointed to a brisk pace of growth in the fourth quarter and hinted at an improvement in the labor market in October. [ID:nN02437173]

"But on the whole, the market is lacking direction as investors wait for results from the FOMC and the ECB meetings."

The benchmark Nikkei .N225 inched down 2.48 points to 9,800.47, after sliding 2.3 percent on Monday to hit a three-week closing low. Japanese markets were closed on Tuesday for a national holiday.

The broader Topix .TOPX dipped 0.2 percent to 878.86.