By Kosaku Narioka

Japan's Nikkei Stock Average hit a record intraday high on rising expectations for a general election next month.

Japanese daily Yomiuri reported late Friday that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was considering dissolving the lower house later this month, which would likely lead to a general election in February.

The Nikkei Stock Average was recently 3.4% higher at 53695.69 on Tuesday morning after hitting an all-time intraday high of 53814.79 earlier. Japanese markets were closed on Monday for a national holiday.

Auto, electronics, and financial stocks were leading gains. Toyota Motor was up 5.0%, Tokyo Electron gained 7.6%, and Mizuho Financial Group was 5.1% higher.

Crédit Agricole said in a note that the ruling coalition was likely to win since public support for the Takaichi government, which was formed following a party vote in October, is high. A general election by the summer was expected for the new government to gain trust from the public, it said.

The yen dropped to a one-year low of 158.33 to the dollar on Tuesday, compared with 157.38 as of Friday's Tokyo stock market close. The 10-year Japanese government bond yield was up 5 basis points at 2.140%.

Write to Kosaku Narioka at kosaku.narioka@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 12, 2026 20:40 ET (01:40 GMT)

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