TOKYO – The Japanese government is considering a state of emergency for Tokyo and Osaka as new Covid-19 numbers rise, broadcaster NHK reported on Wednesday, a move that would allow prefecture authorities to lay curbs to spread infections try to stop.
With thousands of new cases due to highly contagious virus strains, the government is expected to declare a state of emergency for the capital and Osaka prefecture this week, as well as neighboring Hyogo and Kyoto prefectures, a number of local media outlets. report.
If adopted in all four regions, the emergency measures will cover about a quarter of the Japanese population of 126 million.
Japan has so far avoided the kind of explosion of the pandemic that has plagued many Western countries, with total cases so far at about 540,000 and a death toll of 9,707. But the latest rise in infections has sounded alarming, just three months before the planned start of the Tokyo Olympics and amid a sluggish vaccination.
Tokyo reported 843 new infections on Wednesday, the most since January 29, when its previous state of emergency was in place. The number of cases in Osaka has exceeded that in Tokyo over the past few days and reached a record 13,351 on 13 April.
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Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike is preparing to declare a state of emergency from April 29 to May 9, which includes Japan’s annual “Golden Week” holiday period, the Mainichi newspaper reported.
Osaka, the centerpiece of a fourth wave of the pandemic, on Tuesday called for a renewed state of emergency to cancel or postpone all major events to restrict the movement of people.
Hyogo Prefecture, home of the city of Kobe, on Wednesday reported a record 563 new COVID-19 cases and made its own state of emergency official. In ten of the 47 prefectures in Japan, including the Tokyo and Osaka areas, almost emergency measures have been put in place.
The government of Kyoto Prefecture in western Japan is also preparing to request an emergency statement, the Jiji news service reported.
New statements will be the third full state of emergency in Japan since the epidemic began. The total economic loss due to a renewed emergency in the three regions would amount to 1.156 trillion yen ($ 10.71 billion), the Nomura Research Institute said in a report.
Concerns about extended closing measures – and the slow pace of vaccinations – are spreading to investors, with Japanese stocks trading sharply and losing the benchmark Nikkei index by 2%.
Japan’s top spokesman Katsunobu Kato on Wednesday reiterated the government’s position that it would consider any requests for a state of emergency “quickly” without elaborating on a time frame.
Meanwhile, Pfizer Inc will sign a contract this month to supply another 50 million doses of vaccine to Japan by September, the Nikkei newspaper reported. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga was in talks with Pfizer CEO last Saturday to secure more vaccine doses during a visit to the United States.
Together with the existing contracts with Pfizer and Moderna Inc., the COVID-19 vaccine of which is being reviewed by local regulators, it is enough for the entire Japanese adult population.
Government spokeswoman Kato declined to comment on the amount of additional doses of Pfizer. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.