Mail delivery services were profitable in only two of the 12 mail service regions in Japan during the three-year period between the start of fiscal 2000 and the end of fiscal 2002, according to government sources citing an estimate by the postal ministry.
The profitable areas were identified as greater Tokyo and Kanto.
In fiscal 2002, which ended in March, mail delivery services posted losses of 40.7 billion yen in Hokkaido, 48.9 billion yen in Tohoku and 44.5 billion yen in Kyushu among the 10 unprofitable regions.
Losses in the Kinki and Tokai areas, which respectively contain the metropolises of Osaka and Nagoya, were much smaller, at 2.3 billion yen and 6.6 billion yen.
The Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications Ministry estimated earnings from three postal services -- mail delivery, savings and life insurance -- in the three-year period, following the first such estimate covering fiscal 1997 to fiscal 1999.
Mail delivery earnings from fiscal 2000 to 2002 worsened from the preceding three-year period in the 10 unprofitable regions. For example, Tohoku saw its loss increase to 133.3 billion yen from 126.9 billion yen.
Postal savings were unprofitable in all 12 regions in fiscal 2000 due to large interest payments for accounts opened when interest rates were high. But they turned profitable in the following two years.
Postal life insurance brought in profits in 11 regions in each year of the fiscal 2000-2002 period. The Hokkaido block fell into the red in fiscal 2002.