Japan's prime minister resigns after losing elections

Japan's prime minister, Shigeru Ishiba, has announced his resignation after less than a year in the post, following two major election losses.

The move comes a day before his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is expected to vote on whether to hold an internal vote for leadership that could have forced him to step down, the BBC writes.

The LDP has governed Japan for nearly seven decades, but under Ishiba lost most in the lower room for the first time in 15 years and then lost most in the upper room in July.

Japan, the world's fourth largest economy and a key US ally now faces a period of political uncertainty as tensions rise with China, and regional uncertainty increases. /Periscopi/