Japan

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan will take additional stimulus measures “swiftly” to combat the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, signalling readiness to compile a second supplementary budget during the current Diet session running through June.

The new package of steps would aim to cushion the blow to the world’s third-largest economy, which is on the cusp of deep recession amid a plunge in global demand and a local state of emergency that has been extended through to the end of May.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Celebrities and other critics of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have taken to social media in droves to protest against a plan to raise the retirement age for prosecutors, calling it undemocratic and ill-timed during the coronavirus crisis.

Critics fear such a move would let an administration retain favourites in key posts, endangering prosecutors’ independence, and were angered by its timing during the virus pandemic, Abe’s handling of which has drawn fire for being slow and clumsy.

Tokyo, May 10 (AP) The coronavirus in Japan has brought not just an epidemic of infections, but also an onslaught of bullying and discrimination against the sick, their families and health workers.

A government campaign to raise awareness seems to be helping, at least for medical workers. But it's made only limited headway in countering the harassment and shunning that may be discouraging people from seeking testing and care and hindering the battle against the pandemic.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on Sunday the government is looking to lift the state of emergency in “many of 34 prefectures” that are not among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic before the nationwide deadline of May 31.

“Lifting the state of emergency in many of 34 prefectures that exclude those under specific cautions will likely come in sight as many prefectures have been seeing no fresh infections lately,” Nishimura said in a debate on public broadcaster NHK.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday agreed to cooperate closely on measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus, including the development of drugs and vaccines, Japan’s top government spokesman said.

Abe and Trump held talks by phone for about 45 minutes from around 10:00 a.m. (0100 GMT), Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

TOKYO (Reuters) - As Japan prepares to ease coronavirus restrictions in some parts of the country, a growing number of the country’s businesses were planning to resume operations after month-long shutdowns have brought economic activity to a grinding halt.

Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on Friday that the government was looking at ways to bring some parts of the country out of lockdown measures as infections in several regions outside main centres were reporting zero infections on a daily basis.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares surged Friday on optimism the worst of the economic fallout from the pandemic may be over, as Wall Street logged its biggest rally in a week.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 jumped 1.8% to 20,025.91. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.3% to 1,954.48. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.8% to 5,408.90. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1% to 24,220.86, while the Shanghai Composite picked up 0.7% to 2,891.83.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mixed Thursday after a decline on Wall Street after more depressing data rolled in on the devastation sweeping the global economy.

Comments by President Donald Trump on trade with China and casting blame on Beijing for the coronavirus pandemic have further dampened sentiment.

TOKYO, May 4 (Xinhua) -- The Japanese government on Monday officially announced its decision to extend the nationwide state of emergency for COVID-19 by nearly a month until May 31.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made the announcement at a meeting of a government task force on the coronavirus response to extend the state of emergency beyond May 6, the last day of Japan's Golden Week holiday which was the initial expiration date.

TOKYO, May 4 (NNN-NHK) – Japan will restart parks, museums, libraries and some other public facilities, after a nationwide state of emergency is expected to be extended, a senior government official said on Sunday.

Japanese Economic Revitalisation Minister, Yasutoshi Nishimura, told a press conference that the government will allow those facilities to reopen, if sufficient measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are put in place, even in areas with a relatively high number of infections.