Koizumi aims to stay Japanese leader

PRIME Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Monday declared his candidacy for re-election as head of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party as he sought to rebuff challengers vying to run the world's second-largest economy.

The poll on 20 September will see party backbenchers and members choose between a field of candidates offering different visions of how to reinvigorate Japan, which has been saddled with low growth for more than a decade.

In his manifesto, unveiled on Monday, Koizumi said he would press on with tax reforms, privatise the Post Office, and balance the country's books by the early 2010s. He did not offer tax cuts, as some reports had suggested.

He was elected as LDP head in 2001, a post which almost guarantees the holder the Prime Ministership.

Three candidates - former LDP policy chief Shizuka Kamei, former Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura and former Transport Minister Takao Fujii - have already said they will enter the poll.

Other runners may also declare themselves on Monday.

The yen dropped against the dollar overnight amid persistent talk of intervention by the Japanese authorities to halt its rise. It fell 117.70 yen from 116.80 in late New York trade on Friday.