Japan Reports Over 1,000 COVID-19 Cases for Third Consecutive Day... Emergency Declaration Extended for 2 Weeks

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] Japan's daily new COVID-19 cases have exceeded 1,000 for the third consecutive day. Accordingly, the Japanese government has decided to extend the state of emergency in the metropolitan area by two more weeks.

Japanese media reported on the 5th that a total of 1,148 new COVID-19 infections were confirmed nationwide in Japan (as of 6:30 PM).

Japan's daily confirmed cases had stayed below 1,000 for three consecutive days since the 28th of last month, but have risen back to the 1,000 range starting from the 3rd of this month.

As a result, the cumulative number of confirmed cases increased to 438,573, and the death toll rose by 55 in one day to reach 8,211.

That evening, the Japanese government held a COVID-19 task force meeting chaired by Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide and decided to extend the state of emergency, which had been declared with a deadline of the 7th in four metropolitan areas, by two more weeks until the 21st of this month.