Jul 09 (NHK) - Japanese authorities reported Wednesday that 157 more people have been infected with the coronavirus.
That includes one person in the southwestern prefecture of Okinawa, which hadn't confirmed any cases in more than two months.
The minister in charge of the coronavirus response says the situation in the country is becoming more serious.
Economic Revitalization Minister Nishimura Yasutoshi said, "In a certain percentage of these cases, the route of infection is unknown. Also the number of older people with the virus is gradually increasing. We need to deal with this state of affairs with a sense of crisis."
However, Nishimura added that so far, there is no need to declare another state of emergency.
Seventy-five of the infections reported on Wednesday are in Tokyo. It's the first time in a week that the number of daily cases has fallen below a hundred in the capital.
