The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is planning to further ease lockdown measures in the Japanese capital, which were put into force to curb the spread of COVID-19, from June 1, APA reports citing domestic media.
“We are moving to the next step at 12 a.m. on 1 June [15:00 GMT on 30 May],” Yuriko Koike, the mayor of Tokyo, told reporters at a press conference, as quoted by the NHK broadcaster.
As part of the lockdown easing, many non-essential businesses, including gyms and theaters, will be allowed to reopen, although bars and restaurants will only be permitted to serve customers until 22:00 local time, the broadcaster stated.
The daily number of new positive tests reported in the Japanese capital has fallen to below 15, although other areas of the country are experiencing a surge in cases, the broadcaster stated.
"Our city is in the middle of a second wave. We'll do our utmost to contain the virus by asking everyone who had close contact with the infected to undergo PCR [polymerase chain reaction] tests,” Kenji Kitahashi, mayor of the southern city of Kitakyushu, said on Friday, as quoted by the broadcaster.
A total of 43 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Kitakyushu, in Fukuoka prefecture, over the past six days, the broadcaster stated.
Since the start of the outbreak, more than 16,700 cases of the coronavirus disease have been reported in Japan, resulting in the deaths of roughly 880 people, according to the broadcaster.
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