Japan Govt Spokesman: We are not yet in a situation to call a state of emergency

A spokesman of the Japanese Cabinet Office said on Wednesday, “we are not yet in a situation to call a state of emergency.”

Our priority is to get coronoavirus infections under control, he added.

His comments come after Japanese PM Shinzo Abe noted that there have been various requests to stop the movement of people.

Meanwhile, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported earlier today that Tokyo is considering keeping city-operated schools closed through early May, a day after coronavirus infections in the Japanese capital hit a daily record of 78, as cited by Reuters.

Tokyo’s education board is scheduled to meet as early as Wednesday to discuss the plan, the Nikkei business daily reported.

USD/JPY reaction

USD/JPY is bouncing-back towards 108.00, as the yen came under fresh selling pressure on the mixed headlines on the virus situation while broad US dollar rebound also helped. However, the upside may remain capped amid losses in the S&P 500 futures.