21.   The radical opposition in Zaire has plunged the country into political confusion and angered Western governments with a bid to unseat the moderate leaders of parliament and the government.

22.   Yen gains were capped by political confusion after Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi sacked foreign minister Makiko Tanaka late Tuesday.

23.   Japan and the United States have already postponed negotiations on the procurement issue twice in four months amid the political confusion in Japan.

24.   That may not necessarily be the end of the political confusion, however.

25.   The Japanese and the US governments suspended bilateral trade talks earlier this week following political confusion in Japan.

26.   The Japanese parliament approved the budget for the current fiscal year following a considerable delay over political confusion, on Thursday.

27.   The market was very nervous in the light of Italian political confusion and a half-point rise of the Italian discount rate.