More people support than oppose Japan's participation in the envisaged Trans-Pacific Partnership and Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's recent decision to enter into multilateral talks on the pact, newspaper polls showed Tuesday.

More than 80 percent of respondents said, however, that Noda has not fully explained the TPP or his policies to the public, and his Cabinet approval rating has fallen below 50 percent, the Asahi Shimbun and Yomiuri Shimbun said.

In the Asahi's weekend telephone poll, 46 percent said they support participating in the TPP, while 28 percent oppose it.

The survey also found that 84 percent believe the government has provided insufficient information, against 7 percent who said it was sufficient.

The Yomiuri, based on its own weekend telephone survey, reported that 51 percent responded favorably to Noda's decision to take part in the negotiations, while 35 percent held negative views.

Eighty-six percent said the prime minister has not fully explained his policies or ideas to the public.

The Cabinet support rate dropped to 40 percent in the Asahi poll from 48 percent in mid-October, and to 49 percent in the Yomiuri's survey from 55 percent earlier.