For 1st time in 15 mths, Japan has no daily Covid-19 deaths

TOKYO/BEIJING: Japan reported no daily deaths from Covid-19 on Sunday for the first time in 15 months, as infections decline rapidly in the country.

The last time Japan reported no new coronavirus deaths was on August 2, 2020, according to the health ministry.

Covid-19 cases and deaths have fallen dramatically throughout Japan as vaccinations have increased to cover more than 70% of the population.

New daily infections peaked at more than 25,000 during an August wave driven by the infectious Delta variant. The country has had more than 18,000 deaths from the disease during the course of the pandemic.

China reported 89 new confirmed coronavirus cases for November 7 compared with 74 a day earlier, its health authority said on Monday.

Of the new infections, 65 were locally transmitted cases, according to a statement by the national health commission, compared with 50 a day earlier.

More than half of the new local cases were found in the provinces of Liaoning and Henan.

There were no new deaths, leaving the death toll unchanged at 4,636. As of November 7, mainland China had 97,823 confirmed coronavirus cases.

Rapid rise in infection rate in Germany

Germany’s coronavirus infection rate has risen to its highest level since the start of the pandemic, public health figures showed on Monday, and doctors warned they will need to postpone scheduled operations in coming weeks to cope.

The seven-day incidence rate - the number of people per 100,000 to be infected over the last week - rose to 201.1, higher than a previous record of 197.6 in December last year, the figures from the Robert Koch Institute showed on Monday.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases rose to 4,782,546 from 4,767,033 a day earlier. The number of deaths increased by 33 to a total of 96,558.

Also, the lockdown of New Zealand’s largest city Auckland is likely to end later this month, with some coronavirus restrictions eased from Tuesday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said.