The nation reported yet another record-breaking number of new COVID-19 cases Thursday as a surge in infections that began in late October continues to spread across the country.
New daily cases nationwide totaled a record 2,388 as of Thursday evening, NHK reported, 534 of which had been reported in Tokyo by midafternoon.
Speaking to reporters Thursday morning, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said he had urged prefectural governors to call on residents using the Go To Eat campaign — a government program meant to bolster the struggling food industry — to dine-in groups of four people or less.