FOCUS: Japan PM to push tax break talks amid doubts over economic benefits

TOKYO - Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will seek to introduce a two-year freeze on the consumption tax on food, a key pledge in the run-up to her ruling camp's sweeping election victory, but the step may have little economic impact after an initial boost to spending.

While Takaichi has described the tax freeze -- intended to ease the burden of inflation on households -- as a "long-cherished personal ambition," she is set to face greater market scrutiny over how she will manage the finances of the debt-laden nation after hopes for more fiscal stimulus lifted stock markets.