Tokyo registers 970 new coronavirus infections on Jan. 12

TOKYO -- The Japanese capital recorded 970 new coronavirus cases on Jan. 12, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government said.

The new infections came after Tokyo reported 1,219 cases on Jan. 11. The single-day high stands at 2,447 cases, recorded on Jan. 7.

Japan's capital is battling a third wave of coronavirus infections following the first and second waves in April and August last year. Tokyo recorded nearly 16,000 new cases from Jan. 1 to 11, an average of about 1,453 cases per day. It saw nearly 20,000 infections for the whole month of December, the highest monthly count since the pandemic started in spring 2020. That month, infections averaged about 621 new cases per day.

Tokyo has reported over 77,000 infections altogether, the most among Japan's 47 prefectures, with the overall death toll in the capital reaching 689 as of Jan. 11. As of the same day, there were 3,355 patients hospitalized in Tokyo with COVID-19, including 131 with severe symptoms.

(Mainichi)