Now that Mr. Junichiro Koizumi has been elected Prime Minister on his campaign to "Change Japan," one issue that should not be overlooked is how Japan approaches its government-run special corporate entities, or "SPEs."
In this series of articles, I have provided figures and examples of foreign and domestic successes in privatization. This installment will explore only one of the many aspects of this process -- the economic side. More precisely, I will detail the economic spark that offering stock in these entities provides and how the general public can reap the rewards.
By way of introduction, I wish to state that the initial premise of this article is that it is best for the Japanese economy and for the people to participate more in the stock markets here. With the equivalent of over $1.3 trillion controlled by individuals in Japan, and a large portion of it in very low interest-bearing savings accounts, it remains true that only 7 percent of these funds are invested in stocks.