Takaichi's promises to cut taxes, boost the economy and spending on defence have spooked investors, as Japan has one of the world's biggest debt levels

Takaichi plans to dissolve parliament on Friday ahead of the snap vote on February 8 for all 465 seats in the lower house of parliament

The Nikkei shot up on Tuesday amid widespread speculation that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will call a snap election, possibly in just a month's time

Korean shares fared the best in Asia, posting their biggest yearly gains in more than two decades thanks to the country's dominant role supplying chips for AI and data centres

Trump also lavished praise on Japan’s newly-elected PM Sanae Takaichi, the country’s first female leader who, in return, promised to nominate the US President for the Nobel Peace Prize

As Tokyo and Washington finally formalise a trade deal with lower tariffs, many smaller Japanese carmakers are unlikely to get much relief from the pinch of six times higher levies

Japanese policymakers and ruling party lawmakers have said that they see no merit in striking a deal with the US unless the auto tariffs are lifted

Trump’s declaration has fanned fears of a global trade war and a recession, causing big losses in equities in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan

If their deal had succeeded, the two giants would have created the world's fourth-biggest auto group by vehicle sales

Japan's top steel maker said the US government's reviewing process and the decisions over its acquisition proposal for US Steel did not seem properly handled

The merger of the two storied Japanese brands underlines the threat Chinese EV makers now pose to some of the world's best known car makers

The carmakers’ discussion on a merger is the clearest sign yet of how Japan's once seemingly unbeatable auto industry is being reshaped by challenges from Tesla and Chinese rivals.