Japan's health minister says the government has begun supplying the newly-approved drug remdesivir to medical institutions treating coronavirus patients.
Kato Katsunobu said on Tuesday that delivery of the anti-viral drug provided by its US manufacturer began the day before.
Japan's health ministry says it plans to approve antigen tests kits on Wednesday that can quickly screen for the new coronavirus.
The test is similar to those used for the flu, where fluid is swabbed from the back of a patient's nostril and placed onto the kit.
A major Japanese cell-phone carrier has found that trips between prefectures during the holiday period from the end of April to early May were significantly down from last year.
KDDI examined data from users' smartphones for the spring holiday period that ended on May 6. During this period, people were urged to stay home amid concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.
Japan's health authorities say the country saw 70 new cases of the coronavirus and nine deaths on Sunday.
The number of confirmed infections stands at 15,847.
A destroyer of Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force has left for the Middle East to take on an intelligence-gathering mission to ensure the safe navigation of Japan-related vessels in the region's waters.
The Kirisame left Sasebo Base in Nagasaki Prefecture on Sunday after a ceremony that was scaled back due to the coronavirus. The ship has a crew of around 200.
Japanese police say the volume of traffic around the country has plunged amid the coronavirus outbreak, leading to a significant decline in accidents.
But there has been an increase in fatal car crashes in urban areas. Police suspect this is due to more aggressive driving on empty roads.
Japanese health officials confirmed 114 new cases of coronavirus infection on Saturday, including 36 in Tokyo.
Japan now has 15,777 confirmed infections. The list includes people tested at airport quarantine stations.
The Japanese government plans to decide on Thursday whether to lift a state of emergency ahead of schedule in parts of the country.
Restrictions may be eased in more than 30 prefectures where coronavirus infections have declined.
The Japanese government plans to decide on Thursday whether a state of emergency can be lifted in regions where the coronavirus outbreak is easing.
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo told the Diet on Monday that he will hear from experts on Thursday before announcing whether a partial easing is possible.
Japan's biggest business federation has drawn up guidelines aimed at reducing the risk of coronavirus infection in workplaces. They are intended for use by companies when resuming operations in full.
NHK has learned that the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, made two sets of guidelines -- one for office workers and the other for factory workers.
For fiscal 2019 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has posted its first operating loss in two decades. This is mainly due to a delay in the development of the first Japanese-made passenger jet.
The company reported a loss of 29.5 billion yen, or over 274 million dollars, from business activities for the fiscal year that ended in March. This came after the firm took a loss of about 2.42 billion dollars related to the Mitsubishi Spacejet project.
A major Japanese cell-phone carrier has found that trips between prefectures during the holiday period from the end of April to early May were significantly down from last year.
KDDI examined data from users' smartphones for the spring holiday period that ended on May 6. During this period, people were urged to stay home amid concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.
Businesses across Japan are slowly reopening even before the government makes its final decision on lifting a nationwide state of emergency.
More than half the country's prefectures are likely to ease restrictions put in place last month.
A Japanese health ministry survey says the country's 47 prefectures have only secured less than half the number of hospital beds they will need for coronavirus patients when the outbreak reaches its peak.
The survey says more than 31,000 beds will be needed for coronavirus patients at the peak of the outbreak, but fewer than 14,500 had been secured as of May 1.