Here are the latest updates from Japan and beyond on the coronavirus outbreak:
Nagoya TV Tower and the Oasis 21 park (foreground) in Aichi Prefecture are lit up in red on Aug. 6, 2020, as the central Japan prefecture declares its state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic. (Kyodo)
As of 11 p.m., Friday, Aug. 7 (Japan time)
- Japan confirmed a record 1,580 new coronavirus infections on Friday, as cases continue to mount throughout the country, particularly in urban areas like Tokyo and Osaka.
- Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. said Friday it will produce and sell in Japan a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by U.S. biotechnology firm Novavax Inc.
- India reported Friday that its coronavirus cases have doubled in three weeks to over 2 million, a sign the world's second-most populous country is struggling to slow the spread of the virus.
- Teachers and education officials are calling for students to pay special heed to the risk of heat exhaustion this summer, as many schools across Japan shorten their summer holidays and hold more classes than usual to make up for closures due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
- A Philippine health official said Friday that a clinical trial for the Japanese anti-flu drug Avigan as a potential treatment for COVID-19 has yet to begin, correcting an announcement earlier this week by the nation's science secretary that it was already ongoing.
- The Tokyo metropolitan government on Friday reported 462 new cases of coronavirus infection, just short of the daily record of 472 cases confirmed in the capital late last week.
- Japan's household spending fell 1.2 percent in June from a year earlier, down for the ninth straight month, but showed signs of recovery from record falls logged due to the coronavirus pandemic, government data showed Friday.
- The Japanese government is expected to soon reach a deal with British drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc on receiving a supply of over 100 million doses of a coronavirus vaccine being developed with the University of Oxford, a source close to the matter said Friday.
- The U.S. government on Thursday lifted its alert advising Americans to avoid all international travel due to the coronavirus pandemic, saying that the current situation does not warrant such an across-the-board advisory.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - August 1-7
As of 11 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 6 (Japan time)
- Less than 8 percent of people hospitalized in Japan due to the novel coronavirus have died, a rate much lower than in other countries, a study showed Thursday.
- Osaka Prefecture confirmed a record 225 new cases of novel coronavirus infection Thursday, with other urban areas also reporting record daily figures as the virus continues to spread in parts of the country.
- Former komusubi Abi was suspended for three grand sumo tournaments and had his pay reduced for breaking guidelines aimed at preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus, the Japan Sumo Association announced Thursday.
- Nintendo Co. said Thursday its net profit for April to June soared to 106.48 billion yen ($1 billion), a 6.4-fold rise from a year earlier, as the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent stay-home requests spurred demand for its Switch console and software.
- Job offers to students set to graduate from universities and graduate schools next March in Japan fell 15.1 percent from a year earlier to 683,000 amid the coronavirus pandemic, logging the sharpest drop in a decade, a research institute said Thursday.
- Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura has drawn fire for suggesting that popular over-the-counter gargle medicines containing an antiseptic can have an effect on the spread of the coronavirus, causing the products to disappear from store shelves.
- The Tokyo metropolitan government on Thursday reported 360 new cases of the novel coronavirus, up again from the 263 new infections confirmed the previous day.
- Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it expects a 64.1 percent drop in net profit in the current business year through March to 730 billion yen ($6.9 billion) as the global coronavirus pandemic hurts auto demand.
- The Tokyo metropolitan government is considering designating two hospitals to exclusively treat patients infected with the novel coronavirus amid a recent rise in cases, according to sources familiar with the issue.
- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday reiterated there is no immediate need to declare another state of emergency in Japan despite a recent resurgence in novel coronavirus infections.
- North Korea will provide special support for the border city of Kaesong that has been locked down since the country's first suspected case of the novel coronavirus was detected there late last month, state-run media reported Thursday.
- Hiroshima marked the 75th anniversary of its atomic bombing by the United States on Thursday, with its mayor urging the international community to unite against serious threats to humanity -- be they nuclear weapons or the novel coronavirus pandemic -- by spurning nationalistic and isolationist policies.
A man floats lanterns on a river in Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 2020, in memory of victims of the atomic bombing of the western Japan city on its 75th anniversary. (Kyodo)
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- 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 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
