Tokyo: The number of new COVID-19 cases in Japan in the week through last Sunday decreased from the preceding week, marking the fourth consecutive week of decline, a health ministry report showed on Friday.

In the reporting week, a total of 43,705 new cases were reported by about 5,000 regularly monitored medical institutions across the country. The average number of new cases per medical institution was 8.83.

By prefecture, the average number was highest in Aichi, at 12.40, followed by Kumamoto, at 11.30, and Ibaraki, at 10.73.

With new COVID-19 variants spreading in Japan, the National Institute of Infectious Diseases estimates that EG.5.1, an offshoot of the XBB lineage of the omicron coronavirus strain, will account for about 70 pct of new cases in the week from next Monday.

EG.5.1 is more likely than the XBB lineage to evade immunity, including that acquired through vaccination, according to the institute.

JIJI Press