Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from Japan and beyond:
As of 11 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 30
- China asked Thursday for the cooperation of Japan, the host of this summer's Tokyo Olympics, to run the Beijing Games safely, a day after a decision was made that no spectators from overseas can attend them amid the pandemic.
- Tokyo Disney theme parks and Universal Studios Japan will increase the maximum number of visitors they admit every day from 5,000 to 10,000 starting Friday, as Japan's months-long COVID-19 state of emergency expires, their operators said.
- Japan will experience price hikes in some food and tobacco products as well as services from October, partly due to a spike in global raw material prices, dealing a further blow to households hit by the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
- The Tokyo Game Show started Thursday east of the capital, with a physical exhibition open to a select group of guests for the first time in two years and a virtual setup for game enthusiasts who wish to attend remotely.
- The International Olympic Committee on Wednesday unveiled a basic slate of preventive measures against the spread of the novel coronavirus at the Beijing Games next February, including a ban on all spectators except residents of mainland China.
As of 11 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 29
- Business leaders in Japan voiced hope Wednesday that Fumio Kishida, the newly elected president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, will make all-out efforts to return the pandemic-stricken domestic economy to a steady growth track as early as possible.
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People in Japan expressed hope Wednesday that the ruling party's pick of former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida as its new leader and hence the next prime minister will bring strong leadership in leading the nation through the coronavirus pandemic.
- Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. said Tuesday it is considering allowing all 320,000 employees of the telecom giant group to work remotely as the norm and abolishing job relocations, in a drastic shake-up of its management style for a post-coronavirus society.