Japan confirms over 47,000 new Covid cases as country battles eighth wave of pandemic
People come out in Tokyo wearing masks
Japan on Monday confirmed 47,621 new COVID-19 cases, down from 88,752 on Sunday.
Capital Tokyo reported 5,388 new cases, down from 10,454 on Sunday.
The decline in COVID-19 cases on a day-to-day basis is reportedly sharp because of less tests conducted over the weekend, multiple Tokyo-based papers reported.
The official figures said that 117 people lost their lives to Covid-related sickness on Monday.
Japan last week entered the eighth wave of the coronavirus pandemic. This reportedly marks a period where "high-risk behaviours" should be controlled based on the "judgement of each individual", according to Japan Medical Association.
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"As medical resources are limited, a sharp increase in COVID-19 patients would put a strain on the health care system," Satoshi Kamayachi, an executive board member of Japan Medical Association, said at a press conference.
At the same time, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that lapses in strategies to tackle COVID-19 this year continue to create the perfect conditions for a deadly new variant to emerge. “Gaps in testing and vaccination are continuing to create the perfect conditions for a new variant of concern to emerge that could cause significant mortality,” he said.
Meanwhile, Japan's October household spending rose by a real 1.2 per cent for the fifth consecutive month after people spent more on travelling after the government lifted Covid-related restrictions and introduced a subsidy program to revive domestic tourism, government data showed on Tuesday.
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