(Tokyo)
As of 11:00 p.m., Monday, April 27 (Japan time)
- Although not targeted by authorities for closure requests under measures to battle the spread of COVID-19, many bookstores in major metropolitan regions of Japan have chosen to bring down the shutters or curtail opening hours, dealing a blow to book and magazine publishers alike
- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday that Japan will soon approve anti-viral drug Remdesivir for the treatment of coronavirus patients, in what will be the country's first such decision amid the pandemic.
- Some of the crew aboard an Italian cruise ship docked for repairs at Nagasaki Port in southwestern Japan who have tested negative for the novel coronavirus will be sent home as early as this week, the vessel's operator said Monday.
- Japan's Yosakoi Festival has been cancelled for the first time in its 66-year history, as the new coronavirus continues to spread across the country, its organizers said Monday.
- Japan will deny entry to foreign travelers from a further 14 countries including Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, strengthening its border controls to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday.
- The Bank of Japan decided Monday to take additional easing steps for the second straight month, including abolishing its limit on buying government bonds and further expanding its asset-purchasing program, to cushion the economy from the impact of the spread of the novel coronavirus.
- An illustration by famed Japanese cartoonist Leiji Matsumoto, put up for an online auction to support a hospital in Turin, Italy, that has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, was bought for 7,000 euros ($7,500).
- The Japanese government on Monday submitted to parliament a 25.69 trillion yen ($240 billion) reworked supplementary budget to fund a package of emergency measures aimed at mitigating the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
As of 11 p.m., Sunday, April 26 (Japan time)
- Nearly 60 percent of small and midsize companies say they can survive the new coronavirus outbreak and related business shutdowns if the pandemic ends in the next few months, a recent survey by an insurance company showed Sunday.
- China's health authorities on Sunday said that the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Wuhan, the central Chinese city hardest hit by the epidemic, has dropped to zero.
- The Australian government on Sunday launched a voluntary, though controversial, mobile phone application for tracing users' whereabouts and alerting them if they have come into contact with someone diagnosed with the novel coronavirus.
- The government's stay-at-home request to curb the spread of the new coronavirus in Japan has made it not just a painful few weeks for Japan's restaurant industry, but also for those who love dining out.
- One in every 13 university students in Japan is considering leaving school as the coronavirus outbreak has left many of them without a source of income or financial support, a recent survey has found.
List of shops closed in Tokyo following emergency declaration
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- NEW! Tokyo Metropolitan Government's "Tokyo Coronavirus Support Center for Foreign Residents (TOCOS)" multilingual hotline
- Available in Simple Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Nepali, Indonesian, Tagalog, Thai, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Khmer, and Burmese, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays except national holidays.
0120-296-004 (toll free) - AMDA Medical Information Center's "Multilingual Consultation Service Regarding COVID-19"
(April 10~May 20, 2020)
- Available in English, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends and national holidays. Also available in Chinese, Korean, Tagalog, Thai, Spanish, Vietnamese and Portuguese on designated weekdays. Check schedule here.
03-6233-9266
- Available in English and Chinese on weekdays only, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
090-3359-8324 - Tokyo Metropolitan Government's COVID-19 info
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/flow/ - Tokyo Metropolitan Government's hotline
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0570-550571
- Available via fax for those with hearing impairments
03-5388-1396 - Japan National Tourism Organization's "Guide for when you are feeling ill"
- Multilingual clinic/hospital search available in English, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
https://www.jnto.go.jp/emergency/eng/mi_guide.html - JNTO's "Japan Visitor Hotline"
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas)
http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/content/001328767.pdf - Japan's health ministry hotline
- Available in Japanese only, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0120-565653 - World Health Organization's "Q&A on coronaviruses"
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses