Dividing up the four postal services by region is unlikely to occur when privatization begins in 2007, government sources said Tuesday.
The government is considering postponing such a division for the network of over-the-counter services at post offices, they said.
It is also discussing postponing the regional division of the three other services of mail delivery, postal savings and "kampo" life insurance.
When the government starts privatizing postal services in stages in April 2007, the entity succeeding Japan Post will probably start as a special corporation to offer the four services on a nationwide basis, they said.
Counter services at post offices will carry out the three other postal services on a commission basis.
While there are calls in the government for dividing the network of counter services to make them responsive to local needs, many government officials believe it is unlikely that divided counter services would be profitable, they said.
The plan to postpone the regional division of the four postal services is expected to be included in a blueprint for privatization likely to be adopted in September.