Outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and his Cabinet resigned Wednesday.

The cabinet was launched on August 2 following Fukuda's reshuffle of the cabinet he mostly inherited from his predecessor Shinzo Abe the previous day, retaining only 4 of a total of 17 cabinet members. The abrupt and broad change was widely seen as aimed at saving the approval rating which had been lingering at dangerous levels for several months.

Fukuda announced his abrupt resignation on the evening of September 1 amid ever declining approval ratings for his cabinet, sending shockwaves across the nation and incurring criticisms.

(Xinhua News Agency September 24, 2008)