Tokyo Games Torch Relay To Start On March 25

Tokyo Games torch relay to start on March 25

The torch relays of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, postponed to next year, are to be held based mostly on the original plan.

The organizing committee announced on Monday that the Olympic torch relay will start in Fukushima Prefecture on March 25 and continue for 121 days covering all parts of Japan. The starting day is one day ahead of the original plan.

Vaccine May Be Supplied In Japan In January-march

Vaccine may be supplied in Japan in January-March

NHK has learned that Japan's first supply of an experimental coronavirus vaccine being developed by British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca may be provided between next January and March.

Japanese health ministry officials reported the development to NHK. This is the first time that a schedule for a domestic coronavirus vaccine supply has emerged.

Tokyo Disneyland Events Canceled Through March

Tokyo Disneyland events canceled through March

The operator of Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea has removed 12 events and programs from its calendar through March. The cancellations include key Halloween and Christmas events at the two amusement parks.

Oriental Land said a prolonged period of shutdown due to the coronavirus has made it difficult to prepare. The parks, located just outside Tokyo, reopened on July 1 for the first time in about four months.

Anti-racism March Held In Tokyo

Anti-racism march held in Tokyo

An anti-racism march was held in central Tokyo on Sunday as part of the protest movement sparked by the death of George Floyd in US police custody last month.

The protesters included Japanese and non-Japanese people, who responded to calls on social media.

Overnight Stays By Foreign Tourists Dived In March

Overnight stays by foreign tourists dived in March

The Japan Tourism Agency says the number of foreign visitors who stayed at hotels and inns in Japan in March plunged 85.9 percent from a year earlier to 1.18 million.

Agency officials say it was the sharpest fall ever, topping an 81.3-percent fall in April 2011, just after a massive earthquake and tsunami hit northeastern Japan.

Japanese Automakers Saw Output Down 26% In March

Japanese automakers saw output down 26% in March

Global output by eight Japanese auto makers was down more than 20 percent in March as they shut down plants amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Japanese manufacturers produced more than 1,863,000 vehicles last month, down 26 percent from a year earlier.

Number Of Visitors To Japan Down Over 90% In March

Number of visitors to Japan down over 90% in March

Japan's Immigration Services Agency says the number of foreigners who entered the country in March fell by more than 90 percent from the same month last year, due largely to refused entries attributed to the coronavirus.

Preliminary data from the agency shows that 152,162 foreigners arrived in Japan. That number excludes people who were given permission to re-enter. The figure was 2,504,193 in March, 2019.

Some Shinkansen Services To Be Suspended In March

Some Shinkansen services to be suspended in March

The operator of Japan's Tokaido Shinkansen line says it will reduce the number of its trains in late March due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The Central Japan Railway Company had planned to operate extra Nozomi bullet trains from March 19 through 31, when the number of passengers usually increases due to spring holidays.

Abe To Ask All Schools To Close During March

Abe to ask all schools to close during March

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the government is planning to ask all elementary, junior and senior high schools and special support schools in the country to shut down from Monday, until the start of the spring holidays, in a bid to reduce the risk of students catching the new coronavirus.

Abe unveiled the plan on Thursday at a meeting of the government's taskforce on the coronavirus outbreak.