Basic infrastructure — electricity, water supply and gas — as well as businesses such as supermarkets, banks and public transportation, will not be impacted by the declaration.

Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike has requested that residents of the capital — with a population of more than 13 million — isolate themselves until May 6, starting at midnight Tuesday, amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The move came in the wake of Prime Minister Shinzo ...

With the number of novel coronavirus infections rising in Tokyo and other major urban centers, some concerned residents are fleeing to nearby prefectures where the number of cases is minimal. But that is creating worry and wariness among local officials and residents, who are less ...

The crisis has already arrived at Eiju General Hospital in central Tokyo, which has reported 140 cases of COVID-19 in the past two weeks.

Officials from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government said around 10 patients will be transferred on the first day, while around 100 individuals will eventually be housed.

Some economists say the financial aid should be focused on those in need while others say the proposed measure appears to be lacking fairness.

Tokyo confirmed 80 cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, metropolitan government sources told public broadcaster NHK. The figure would mark the lowest number of cases in Tokyo since April 1, when it reported 66, according to metropolitan government data. Today's 80 new cases would raise the total ...

Li Xiaoli has been hard at work in recent days at the car dealership she owns in Wuhan, making sure she has enough sanitizer and protective gear for the company's long-awaited reopening. The 49-year-old's home city was on Wednesday finally set to start lifting the ...

Facebook Inc.'s WhatsApp tightened message forwarding limits Tuesday, restricting users to sharing forwarded content one chat at a time after a jump in messages touting bogus medical advice since the start of the coronavirus crisis. The pandemic, which has killed more than 70,000 people worldwide, ...

Port restrictions and canceled flights are straining the ability for shipping firms to replace seafarers, further weakening global supply chains already snarled by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hubs like Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Shanghai have halted most crew transfers, while global lockdowns have complicated travel from ...

The National Rifle Association failed to convince a federal judge that the temporary closures of California gun shops prompted by the spread of the coronavirus was unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Andre Birotte in Los Angeles on Monday denied the NRA’s request for a temporary restraining ...

India has partially lifted a ban on the exports of a malaria drug after U.S. President Donald Trump sought supplies for the United States, according to government officials with knowledge of the matter. Exports of hydroxychloroquine and paracetamol will be allowed depending on availability of ...

Japan plans to provide the anti-flu drug Avigan for free to 20 countries hoping to use it to treat coronavirus patients, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Tuesday. The 20 countries receiving the drug, which is currently undergoing clinical tests, include Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Indonesia, ...

Japanese lifestyle specialty store operator The Loft Co. will debut in the Chinese market by opening its first directly owned overseas outlet in Shanghai possibly in July. The Loft signed a tenancy contract last Friday with the operator of the Metro City shopping mall in ...

When the European Union’s 27 leaders last managed to gather in person, they didn’t even talk about the coronavirus. It was Feb. 21, the day Italy recorded its first fatality from the disease. They haggled unsuccessfully for 28 hours over the EU’s notoriously complicated budget. ...

Poland’s ruling party is pressing forward with conducting Europe’s only national election during the COVID-19 crisis. The Law and Justice party muscled its measure to hold the May 10 presidential election only via mail-in ballots through the lower house of parliament late Monday. Poland’s human ...

As many institutions delay the start of classes amid the coronavirus epidemic, a majority of university and postgraduate students in Japan are willing to participate in interactive online lectures, a recent survey showed. But while 59.2 percent were positive about online classes, 21.0 percent said ...

Consumer spending fell in February but at a slower than expected pace as households scrambled to buy protective masks, toilet paper and food staples amid the worsening COVID-19 pandemic. But spending on travel and entertainment slumped, according to government data released Tuesday, in a sign ...

When Tokyo Games organizers, the International Olympic Committee and the world's premier athletes saw their July and August 2020 plans go up in a coronavirus-ignited puff of smoke recently, they began a journey into the unknown. No Olympics has been postponed before, so nobody knows ...

The two most important locations for international climate diplomacy — this year and last —have both been turned into field hospitals. In Glasgow, it’s the giant Scottish Event Campus that’s now lined with beds. Until last week that venue was set to host the United ...

The World Health Organization voiced concern on Monday that the wearing of medical masks by the general public could exacerbate the shortage for health workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. It said lockdowns in many places are proving effective in dampening spread ...

U.S President Donald Trump eased restrictions on exports of masks and other protective equipment needed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic just days after their introduction as he confronted a backlash from allies around the world. Faced with domestic criticism of his administration’s handling of ...

A state of emergency is set to be called as early as Tuesday in areas of Japan most heavily hit by the spread of COVID-19. But how will life change for residents? In practice, not as much as you might think. People will be instructed ...

As the coronavirus pandemic penetrates more deeply into global supply chains, prices for key staples are starting to soar in some parts of the world. Rice and wheat — crops that account for about a third of the world’s calories — have been making rapid ...

The world's top central bankers have pulled out all the stops in their fight against the coronavirus fallout, taking money printing to extremes that may become the new normal long after the pandemic is over. The tools used by the Bank of Japan, the U.S. ...

Shifting the start of the school year to fall would bring the nation a number of benefits.

The prime minister’s economic package may look bold, but action comes late.

How should we weigh the benefits against the costs of unemployment, social isolation and widespread bankruptcies?

An English lesson looks at what you do to prepare for a weekend at home.

Attaching the verb "meku" to certain Japanese words can emphasize the idea of showing signs of something or appearing to look like something.

Let's look at some business terms via a Japanese news article about a rise in sales at convenience stores during the early days of the new coronavirus outbreak.

The public exhibition of the Olympic flame in Fukushima Prefecture will be suspended after Wednesday due to escalating concerns about the spread of the new coronavirus in Japan, the Tokyo Games organizing committee said Tuesday. The flame was put on display last Thursday following the ...

Already reeling from the chaos caused by the spread of the new coronavirus, sporting bodies in Japan are expecting further disruption from the state of emergency Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared in parts of the country on Tuesday. Though most sports organizations say Abe's move, ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White has said the mixed martial arts promotion is close to securing a "private island" to stage bouts for international fighters during the COVID-19 pandemic. The flu-like virus has infected 1.27 million people around the world and caused over 70,000 ...

When Tokyo won the rights to host the 2020 Summer Games in 2013, retired top fencer Kenichi Chida was determined to find a role to play, having been one of the "phantom athletes" who never made it to the boycotted 1980 Games in Moscow. Born ...

The international wrestling governing body, United World Wresting (UWW), plans to keep its world championships in 2021, which would mark the first time the event is staged in an Olympic year, UWW's vice president said Monday. "Such (a) move will be entirely in favor of ...