The House of Councilors' rejection Monday of the contentious postal privatization bills fueled pessimism in the financial sector about future reforms of the world's biggest financial institution, banking industry insiders said.
"In the current political arena, there is no one but (Prime Minister Junichiro) Koizumi who can go forward with the reforms amid strong opposition," one banking industry official said.
"If the Liberal Democratic Party loses in the election and Koizumi is forced to resign, it might take 10 years for postal privatization to be on the table again."