USD/JPY climbs to near 152.00 as Takaichi elected as Japan Prime Minister

• USD/JPY jumps to around 151.90 in Wednesday's early Asian session.
• Sanae Takaichi has become Japan's first female prime minister.
• Traders weigh the potential fallout from a US government shutdown.

The USD/JPY pair attracts some buyers to six-day peaks near 151.90 during the early Asian session on Wednesday. The Japanese Yen (JPY) weakens against the US Dollar (USD) after dovish Sanae Takaichi was elected as Japan's Prime Minister. Traders will take more cues from the speeches of Federal Reserve (Fed) officials later on Wednesday, including Alberto Musalem and Michael Barr.

Japan's parliament on Tuesday elected ultraconservative Sanae Takaichi as the country's first female prime minister. Takaichi vowed to strengthen the nation's economy and defense capabilities and enhance relations with the US. Her victory came after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) allied with the Japan Innovation Party and reportedly signed an agreement over the weekend to form a coalition government.

Takaichi's support for fiscal stimulus and looser monetary policy keeps traders on edge and complicates the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) path for rate hikes. The expectation that the Japanese central bank would further delay raising interest rates could weigh on the JPY and act as a tailwind for the cross in the near term.

The US government shutdown has entered its fourth week as the Senate on Monday failed for the 11th time to advance a House-passed measure to fund the government and end the ongoing shutdown. The 50-43 vote fell mostly along party lines. This marks the third-longest funding lapse in modern history.

Fears of a prolonged US federal shutdown and a delay in the release of US economic data, including the Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP), create uncertainty for financial markets and the Fed. This could prompt traders to raise bets on a rate cut, undermining the Greenback.