Osaka became the top prefecture in the number of new coronavirus cases in Japan with 187, eclipsing Tokyo by one.

Osaka's figure rose by two from Tuesday, while Tokyo reported 21 fewer cases, dipping below 200 for the first time in two days.

The Tokyo figure, which was below the average of 256.3 over the most recent seven days, pushed the cumulative tally in the capital to 18,268, with 344 deaths and 31 people in serious condition. People in their 20s or 30s accounted for 55 percent of the cases, according to the metropolitan government.

The result was based on 1,148 tests conducted Sunday.

The capital is maintaining its alert at the highest of four levels, meaning "infections are spreading." It has requested establishments serving alcohol and karaoke venues to close by 10 p.m. through the end of the month to prevent further spread of the virus.

Kazuhiro Tateda, President of the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases, said Wednesday that Japan is in the middle of the second wave of infections and that he is worried about the twin pandemic of COVID-19 and influenza this coming winter, local reports said.

In other regions, Fukuoka Prefecture posted 102 new cases while Kanagawa Prefecture posted 95 infections.

Okinawa announced one death and 71 new infections, more than double that of Tuesday.

Aichi Prefecture reported 57 new cases, unchanged from a day earlier, while Hyogo Prefecture logged 49 new infections, up from 25 on Tuesday.

Across Japan, the number of new COVID-19 infections rose by 919 to 58,415 as of Tuesday, while the death toll increased by 16 to 1,148, marking the biggest rise since a state of emergency was fully lifted in late May.