TOKYO: Japan confirmed 8,393 new COVID-19 infections on Monday, up by 3,704 from a week earlier.

Although the daily count stood below 10,000 for the first time in five days, it set a new record high for a Monday.

The number of new deaths from the coronavirus disease came to 11 across the country, including five in Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo.

The nationwide number of severe COVID-19 cases rose by 13 from the previous day to 704.

By prefecture, the daily number of new infections hit a record high in Kanagawa, at 1,686, and in the northeastern prefecture of Fukushima, at 136. Kanagawa’s figure included 825 in Yokohama, a record high for the prefecture’s capital. Of Fukushima’s total, the city of Iwaki accounted for 62, including 48 related to a child facility.

In Tokyo, the metropolitan government newly confirmed 2,195 people infected with the coronavirus on Monday.

Tokyo’s daily infection tally increased by 766 from a week earlier to renew its record high for a Monday. The tally averaged 3,214.4 for the week through Monday, up 106.9 pct from the preceding week.

Of the newly infected people in the Japanese capital, those in their 40s or younger accounted for 1,887, or about 86 pct, including 773 in their 20s.

Under the metropolitan government’s standards, the number of people severely ill with the coronavirus climbed by 13 from the previous day to 114.

JIJI Press