Accelerating economic reform in Japan: The role of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy

Since the Koizumi administration started in April 2001, Japan has taken a non-Keynesian economic policy stance and structural reform such as financial sector reform and regulatory reform has been accelerated, and thus contributing to a recent improvement in economic conditions in Japan. Particularly important achievements in the last seven years include the

following:

the non-performing loan problem has been resolved and the financial system has been stabilized;

deregulation in financial, energy, telecommunication and other sectors has been accelerated; and

privatization of Japan Post, the biggest financial institution in the world, has been decided.