11.   Koizumi opposes a cut in the rate because he says it will hurt the financial health of the national pension fund, which his minister supervises.

12.   Mexico is following in the footsteps of Chile, where private pension plans form the backbone of the national pension system and support the local stock exchange.

13.   Over the past five years South Korea has set up a national pension scheme and gone a long way towards providing comprehensive health insurance.

14.   The biggest issue is whether privatization would distance the national pension system from interest- group politics in Washington, as it has in Chile.

15.   The bureau uses money from the national pension plan and the postal savings and insurance system to buy bonds.

16.   The ministry buys bonds periodically to earn interest on money it manages on behalf of the national pension plan and to supply money to the banking system.

17.   The Ministry of Finance funds the zaito program by borrowing from the state-run postal savings and insurance systems as well as the national pension plan.

18.   The opposition Labour Party is considering a new national pension strategy based on joint employer-employee trusteeship as part of a review of its social security policy.

19.   The zaito rate is the rate at which the Finance Ministry lends money from the national pension plan for investment in financial assets and public works projects.

20.   And the national pension system could go into the red for the first time ever this year, the government has said.