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January 8, 2000 
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| January 8, 2000 | atimes.com | |
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| Japan Consumers enjoy the fruits of deregulation TOKYO - Government deregulation measures saved the average Japanese consumer 67,878 yen ($645) in fiscal 1998, the Economic Planning Agency says. The total savings from deregulation were put at 8.58 trillion yen, equivalent to 2.3% of national income. ''Deregulation encouraged competition, helping to lower prices and cut corporate costs,'' an EPA researcher said. The electronics and telecommunications industries were responsible for about half of the estimated savings, or 3.85 trillion yen, thanks to eased restrictions on industry entry and lower phone charges. In the eight years through March 1999, the number of Type I telecom carriers jumped from 68 to 179. Meanwhile, cell phone charges dropped about 60%. The next biggest winners were power consumers, who saw their bills fall thanks to the introduction of a new system for assessing power charges in 1995. Total consumer savings from this industry were estimated at 1.71 trillion yen. Lower gasoline prices following the liberalization of imports in 1996 produced savings of 1.44 trillion yen in the petrochemical industry. (Asia Pulse/Nikkei) | |||||||||
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