Visitors to Kyoto have plummeted, prompting a new series of ads showing sites like the Arashiyama bamboo forest totally devoid of people. (soranews24.com)

Japan's health ministry says 99 more people on board the quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess have tested positive for the new coronavirus. (NHK)

As Japan ramps up its response to the coronavirus outbreak, one of the largest sporting events in the nation will be curtailed, with participation in the Tokyo Marathon limited to elite runners and wheelchair competitors, organizers said Monday. (Japan Times)

Americans began leaving a quarantined cruise ship in Japan on Monday to board chartered flights home as the number of new coronavirus cases diagnosed on the vessel jumped to 355. (Japan Times)

The approval rate for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet stands at 41.0 percent, a Kyodo News survey showed Sunday, down 8.3 points from the previous poll in January and marking the sharpest fall in nearly two years amid yet another cronyism scandal. (Kyodo)

The coronavirus outbreak remains at an initial stage in Japan, an expert panel under the health ministry said Sunday, choosing not to raise the country's alert level that would have allowed for a more aggressive response. (Nikkei)

Japan invented the zombie company: a once proud and innovative name that has lost its way and staggers from one crisis to another. But has Asia's second biggest economy now created the zombie privatization? (Nikkei)

The number of new coronavirus infections among passengers and crew of the Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined near Tokyo has risen by 70 to 355, the government said Sunday, while more domestic cases were also reported and experts warned the situation could worsen. (Kyodo)

As Japan grapples with the expanding new coronavirus outbreak, six more people — five in Tokyo and another in Aichi Prefecture — tested positive Sunday for the deadly virus, local authorities said. (Japan Times)

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party submitted an amendment to the Diet in January to expand the “widow’s deduction” covering single parents who have never been married. (Japan Times)

Health experts confirmed new cases of the coronavirus across Japan on Saturday. The total number of infections is now over 330, including 285 on a quarantined cruise ship. (NHK)

Health authorities in Japan are hurrying to come up with effective measures to contain the spread of the new coronavirus after they found it hard to track down the infection routes of some cases. (NHK)

Over the next five days, Japan faces the daunting task of testing thousands of passengers aboard a quarantined cruise ship, evacuating them and transporting those who test positive for the coronavirus — or who may have come in contact with someone who has — to medical facilities on shore. (Japan Times)

The corpse of a missing man was found along the tracks at a rail station in Kumagaya City, police said, reports TV Asahi (Feb. 14) (tokyoreporter.com)

Surrounded by bustling downtown streets, shopping malls and high-rises, Kawasaki Station and its vicinity are, on the surface, a paragon of urban development. (Japan Times)

The Tokyo District Court on Friday sentenced a 57-year-old man to 18 months in prison, suspended for four years, over an incident last April in which he left knives on Prince Hisahito’s desk at his junior high school in the capital. (Japan Times)

Japan saw several new cases of coronavirus infection reported on Friday, leading health officials to try and establish just how they contracted the virus. The latest cases bring the number of infected people in Japan to 259, including 218 from a cruise ship. (NHK)

The Japanese government has launched a 136-million-dollar package to fight the coronavirus outbreak. It includes funds for the development of a vaccine and treatment for the illness caused by the virus. (NHK)

A doctor at a hospital in the western Japanese prefecture of Wakayama has tested positive for the new coronavirus. (NHK)

Japan has confirmed its first death of a person infected with the new coronavirus in the country. Health ministry officials say the Japanese woman in her 80s was a resident of Kanagawa Prefecture, just south Tokyo. (NHK)

Popular Japanese singer-songwriter Noriyuki Makihara was arrested Thursday for allegedly possessing illegal drugs at his home in Tokyo, police said. (Kyodo)

Japanese e-commerce conglomerate Rakuten on Thursday said it sold $1.4 billion worth of shares in its technology holdings, including its entire stake in U.S. social networking service Pinterest, underlying growing concerns about overvaluations in the sector. (Nikkei)

SoftBank Group Corp. founder Masayoshi Son said he is considering a new type of fund for startup investing, showing his determination to keep cutting deals after missteps with WeWork and several other companies. (Japan Times)

In a significant policy turnaround, the health ministry announced Thursday that those age 80 or older will be able to disembark the Diamond Princess if they test negative for COVID-19. (Japan Times)

A 112-year-old Japanese who has been recognized as the world’s oldest living man cited “laughter” Wednesday as the secret to his longevity. (Japan Times)