As of 11 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 18
- The organizers of the postponed Tokyo Olympics may limit competitors' stays in the athletes' village and require participants to maintain social distance in order to prevent coronavirus infections, officials said Wednesday.
- Japan reported more than 2,000 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday for the first time since the outbreak of the virus, with Tokyo also confirming a daily record in what experts say could be the third wave of the pandemic in the country.
- The estimated number of foreign travelers to Japan plunged 98.9 percent in October from a year earlier to 27,400 for the 13th straight month of decline due to the global coronavirus pandemic, government data showed Wednesday.
- The International Paralympic Committee is encouraged by the Japanese government's efforts amid the coronavirus pandemic to have spectators at the Tokyo Games next summer, a senior official of the organization of elite sports for disabled athletes said.
- Tokyo reported a record 493 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, with the metropolitan government planning to raise its virus alert to the highest level amid a resurgence, local government sources said.
- The Japanese unit of Malaysia's budget airline AirAsia Group said Tuesday it has filed for bankruptcy due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on travel demand, with a lawyer saying the unit is unable to refund around 23,000 air tickets.
As of 11 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 17
- Japanese companies have been cutting job offers to new graduates at the fastest pace in more than a decade, a government survey showed Tuesday, as the coronavirus pandemic has forced firms into thorough efforts to reduce costs.
- International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach on Tuesday visited the athletes' village for the postponed Tokyo Games, where health and safety measures to combat the novel coronavirus include the establishment of a new outpatient facility.
- Ministers from 21 Pacific Rim economies on Monday pledged to cooperate to support economic recovery as the region reels from the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
- Biotechnology company Moderna Inc. said Monday that its experimental vaccine was 94.5 percent effective in preventing COVID-19, making it the second U.S. firm to show promising results in developing a vaccine against the coronavirus pandemic.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - November 7 ~ 13
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"
- Available in Simple Japanese and English, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Also available in Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese on designated weekdays. Check schedule here.
03-6233-9266 - 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