The number of deaths related to COVID-19 in Japan tops 7,000 while daily coronavirus infections totaled about 970, including 266 in Tokyo, a Kyodo News tally shows.
Fewer people to get Pfizer vaccine in Japan due to syringe shortage
Japan is unlikely to inoculate as many people with Pfizer Inc. s COVID-19 vaccine as planned due to a shortage of special syringes capable of extracting the final dose from vials provided by the drugmaker, health minister Norihisa Tamura said Tuesday.
The country said last month that it had secured doses for 72 million people based on the assumption that each vial could provide six shots. But without low dead space syringes, which minimize the amount of vaccine left in the syringe after use, a vial ends up yielding only five doses enough for 60 million people.
Japan s upper house is set to pass bills that will introduce fines for people and businesses that do not comply with restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Japan s consumer confidence continues to worsen amid virus emergency
Japan s consumer confidence continued to worsen in January amid the government s latest state of emergency declaration to combat the coronavirus pandemic, government data showed Friday.
The seasonally adjusted index of sentiment among households made up of two or more people fell 2.2 points from the previous month to 29.6, the second straight month of declines, following a 1.9 point drop in December, according to the Cabinet Office.
A sign announcing shortened business hours at an entrance of a high-rise shopping mall in Nagoya is pictured Jan. 18, 2021. (Photo courtesy of JR Tokai Takashimaya Co.)(Kyodo)