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Each JR company has seen an increase in the volume of transport,
and their financial position has also improved. JR East, JR Tokai and JR West
have been listed on the stock exchanges, and are steadily moving towards complete
privatization.
JR Hokkaido, JR Shikoku and JR Kyushu are still confronted with severe financial
constraints, but by thoroughly rationalizing their business, their financial
situation should improve to the point where the three companies will be listed
on the stock exchanges by FY 2001.
In the case of JR Freight, the situation has been too difficult to achieve
the ultimate goal of complete privatization. The company is in urgent need of
improving its operational and financial status by means of drastic rationalization
if it is to for achieve complete privatization as soon as possible.
The Settlement Corporation is expending its best efforts to repay the debts through the disposal of land, stocks and other assets, and thereby reduce the burden on the taxpayer.
| ･ By FY 1996 the Settlement Corporation sold 6,863 ha of land
that was transferred from the JNR, and raised 5.6 trillion yen in revenues.
･ The Settlement Corporation sold stocks of JR East (1993), JR West (1996) and JR Tokai (1997) for 2 trillion yen in revenues. ･ Of the JNR's equity shares in the Teito Rapid Transit Authority, 39.3 billion yen were used to repay debts by FY 1990, and the remaining shares were transferred to the government in exchange for transferring 937.2 billion yen of debt to the government. |
The Settlement Corporation spent 14.6 trillion yen on interest payments
and others, and has earned 12.9 trillion yen from the disposal of assets during
the past 10 years.
Sales of assets have not proceeded smoothly, firstly because of a government
freeze on land sales that aimed at restraining skyrocketing real estate prices.
This was inevitable in light of the socioeconomic situation of the times. After
that, since the collapse of the so-called bubble economy, and the resultant
devaluation of real estate and share prices, sales of land and JR stocks have
not proceeded smoothly.
In addition, the Settlement Corporation was forced to shoulder a special
burden concerning the Japan Railway Mutual Pension Fund. Upon integrating the
Japan Rail-way Mutual Pension Fund into the Social Security Pension Fund, the
corporation ended up with additional liabilities.
Due to these reasons, the balance of long-term debts and other liabilities
rose to 28.1 trillion yen by the beginning of FY 1997 (Fig.
20).
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