Japan's prime minister-elect, Naoto Kan, has picked Yoshihiko Noda as his finance minister, Kyodo news agency said on Saturday.

Noda, formerly deputy finance minister, would be welcomed by the bond market because he favours fiscal discipline and has supported the idea of capping new debt issuance for next year.

Satoshi Arai, an aide to outgoing Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who is also said to be close to Kan, has been tapped for national strategy minister, Kyodo said.

Support for Japan's ruling Democratic Party leaped to 36.1 percent in a poll published by Kyodo news agency, up 15.6 percentage points on a previous survey carried out just before a change of leadership.

New party head Naoto Kan was voted in as prime minister on Friday and is set to be sworn in as premier on Tuesday.

Reuters