By MAYUMI NEGISHI and HIROKO NAKATA Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's landslide victory has given him a broad mandate to privatize the postal services and downsize the bloated public sector.
Market players cheered Sunday's purge of the old-guard resistance from Koizumi's party, sending stocks and the yen surging on Monday amid continuing optimism over stronger industrial production, speedy inventory adjustment and an influx of foreign funds into Japan.
But the coming year will be Koizumi's toughest yet if he is to truly deliver on his promises, experts say.