51.   Among APEC members, Indonesia and Thailand have been particularly active in deregulating their economies in recent times.

52.   Barshefsky said Wednesday that current efforts by the Japanese government to deregulate their economy have been disappointing.

53.   Despite steps by successive Japanese governments to deregulate the economy and grant greater access to foreign competition, the Tokyo-Washington relationship has remained tense.

54.   Economists and a growing number of Japanese leaders are almost unanimous in their opinion that Japan must drastically deregulate its economy to allow more domestic and foreign competition.

55.   EPA director-general Shusei Tanaka said mitigating factors included continuing problems clearing up massive bad debts run of financial institutions and delays in deregulating the economy.

56.   The United States has also been pressing Japan to take further steps to deregulating its economy, making it more accessible to foreign goods and services.

57.   It said Asia would also face a bigger challenge from newly deregulating economies in Eastern Europe which offered lower costs and better-educated workers to foreign investors.

58.   Mondale said he was also disappointed with Japanese efforts to deregulate the economy.

59.   On Wednesday the Japanese government announced belated measures to stimulate the economy but investors viewed them badly, saying the government had not done enough to deregulate the economy.

60.   She also said that current efforts by the Japanese government to deregulate their economy have been disappointing.