The weekly number of newly confirmed novel coronavirus cases has dropped for the fourth consecutive week in Japan. 

As of 10 A.M. Monday (1 A.M. GMT), the cumulative number of infection cases, including cruise ship passengers and crew members, came to 406,289, up 15,601 from a week before. The margin of rise shrank from the previous week’s 24,260.

Of the country’s 47 prefectures, Tokyo had the largest number of cumulative infection cases at 103,845, up 4,004.

The western prefecture of Osaka came second at 45,076, up 1,354, and Kanagawa Prefecture, near Tokyo, third at 42,281, up 1,519.

In Japan, the total death toll linked to COVID-19 grew by 675 to 6,441.

The cumulative death toll was highest in Tokyo at 1,023, up 137, followed by Osaka at 998, up 72, and the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido at 620, up 18.

Shimane in western Japan remained the only prefecture where no coronavirus death had been reported so far.

JIJI Press