Department stores in Japan are bracing for sales of their New Year bargain packages while taking measures to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. (NHK)

Crowds of people were visiting Meiji Jingu, a major Shinto shrine in central Tokyo, early Friday after the coronavirus outbreak put the brakes on the tradition of visiting the shrine overnight on New Year's Eve. (NHK)

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Friday said the government will do everything in its power to bring the novel coronavirus under control and pledged to push forward with preparations for this summer's Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. (Japan Times)

Health officials reported a record 4,520 new coronavirus infections across Japan on Thursday. That is the first time the daily tally has surpassed 4,000. (NHK)

Much of Japan welcomed 2021 quietly at home, alarmed after Tokyo reported a record high 1,337 coronavirus infections among the 4,519 daily number nationwide. (Japan Today)

People across Japan have celebrated the New Year amid reinforced measures to prevent the spread of the virus. (NHK)

Railway operators in the Tokyo metropolitan area say they will not run trains all night on New Year's Eve into New Year's Day due to the coronavirus outbreak. (NHK)

Police in Tokyo have arrested two men on suspicion of stealing a wallet from a sleeping passenger on a subway train. (Japan Today)

While Japan has entered the year-end and New Year's holiday period, medical workers continue to devote all their energies to coping with persistent coronavirus surges. (Japan Times)

Pop singer Ayumi Hamazaki has cancelled her New Year’s Eve performance after a performer in her group tested positive for the novel coronavirus, her agency said on Tuesday. (tokyoreporter.com)

Experts warn that Tokyo's medical system is under severe strain and is entering a critical stage due to a surge in coronavirus cases in the Japanese capital. (NHK)

Japan confirmed 3,605 new cases of the coronavirus as of 10 p.m. on Tuesday. (NHK)

The Japanese government has decided to suspend special entry conditions for athletes and team staff from countries and regions where new, potentially more infectious variants of the coronavirus have been found, sources with knowledge of the matter said Tuesday. (Kyodo)

Tokyo's benchmark stock index hit a 30-year closing high on Tuesday, following a rise in US markets. (NHK)

The general public in Japan will be able to receive low-cost at-home coronavirus testing from SoftBank Group, which until now had only offered its PCR screening to companies and local governments. (Nikkei)

Tokyo's coronavirus outbreak is severe and could explode in the coming days just as Japan begins its New Year's holiday period, in which millions of people usually move around the country, the city's governor said on Wednesday. (Japan Today)

Tokyo stocks are likely to climb in 2021 with progress in global COVID-19 vaccinations helping to improve the business climate and Japan's accommodative monetary policies remaining in place. (Japan Times)

Get to know more about the Japan National Stadium, which will play host to the 2020 J.LEAGUE YBC Levain CUP Final! (J.LEAGUE International)

The terminal for Japan's Shinkansen bullet trains in Tokyo is much quieter than usual during the year-end holidays due to the coronavirus pandemic. (NHK)

A new variant of the coronavirus that was first detected in South Africa has been confirmed in Japan. (NHK)

A fresh ban on foreign visitors announced less than a week before New Year's Day was a telling sign of the high pressure Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga faces as he grapples with a deeply unhappy public that has sent his approval ratings tanking. (Nikkei)

Princess Kako, the niece of Japanese Emperor Naruhito, turned 26 on Tuesday, while spending much of her recent time at her residence in Tokyo and performing her duties online amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to the Imperial Household Agency. (Kyodo)

Sakuradamon Gate Area: Remains of Edo Era Residence of Yonezawa Uesugi Family (ONLY in JAPAN)

Former transport minister Yuichiro Hata died on Sunday while being transported to a hospital in Tokyo, though the cause of his death was not immediately known, people close to him said. He was 53. (Japan Times)

Japan is developing a system aimed at keeping track of travelers from overseas as part of efforts to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus within its borders, a senior government official said Sunday. (Japan Today)