Japan PM Takaichi dissolves parliament

TOKYO, Jan 23 (AFP): Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dissolved parliament on Friday ahead of a snap election on February 8, counting on her cabinet's high poll numbers to steer her otherwise unpopular ruling party to victory.
The country's first woman premier announced her intentions on Monday, seeking public backing for measures to shield households from rising living costs and increase spending on defence.
The speaker of parliament on Friday read out a letter, officially dissolving the lower house as lawmakers shouted the traditional rallying cry of "banzai".
The ruling coalition of Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Japan Innovation Party (JIP) has only a slim majority in the powerful lower chamber.