Japan banking minister quits over postal bill

TOKYO - Japan's banking minister Shizuka Kamei, an advocate of big spending, said on Friday he would quit the cabinet, improving the chances that Prime Minister Naoto Kan can forge ahead with efforts to rein in the country's huge debt.

Shozaburo Jimi, a senior executive in a tiny coalition partner in Japan's ruling bloc, was appointed banking minister on Friday, replacing Kamei. Jimi, 64, is secretary-general of the People's New Party, which has nine members in parliament.

Kan, who took over the nation's top job after his unpopular predecessor quit abruptly last week, has made tackling a public debt that is already twice the size of Japan's GDP a top priority. But while Kamei's departure, sparked by a spat over a controversial bill to roll back postal privatization, removes one obstacle, how aggressively Kan can implement fiscal reforms will depend on the results of an upper house election, probably on July 11.