at 20:00 (JST), February 07

The number of confirmed cases of the new coronavirus has topped 30,000 in mainland China. The death toll has surpassed 600.

Japan's health ministry says another 41 people aboard a quarantined cruise ship moored at Yokohama Port have tested positive for the new coronavirus.

Uncertainty continues in the United States over who won the Democratic Party's presidential nomination contest in the state of Iowa.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20200207200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : number of confirmed cases topped 30,000
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200207_25/

The number of confirmed cases of the new coronavirus has topped 30,000 in mainland China. The death toll has surpassed 600.

China's National Health Commission says 3,143 new cases were confirmed on Thursday. That brings the total number of patients to 31,161.

The number of new cases has topped 3,000 for four consecutive days. More than 70 percent of them are in Hubei Province, the center of the outbreak.

The number of patients in serious condition has increased by 962. The total is now 4,821.

Authorities say 69 new deaths were reported in Hubei Province. The provinces of Jilin, Henan, Guangdong and Hainan reported one death each. The total number of deaths in mainland China now stands at 636.

A senior Hubei official told reporters that more than 10,000 medical workers have come to the province to help.

But the official said the province needs more than 2,000 additional personnel who specialize in respiratory medicine and can treat seriously ill patients.

Key words : chinese doctor
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200207_31/

The Chinese doctor who was reprimanded by police for trying to sound the alarm in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak died on Friday.

Li Wenliang was a 34-year-old ophthalmologist. He worked at a hospital in Wuhan.

Chinese media reports say that Li sent a warning to an online chat group on December 30. He told the group about a new viral infection that he believed was similar to SARS, which broke out in 2003.

He was summoned by local police a few days later. The authorities reprimanded him for spreading false information and severely disrupting the social order.

He continued working at the hospital, but was hospitalized in mid-January after developing a fever and a cough. It was later confirmed that he was infected with the new coronavirus.

Li voiced more concerns on the Weibo social media platform. He questioned why officials were denying the existence of human-to-human transmissions. He also wondered why the authorities were continuing to deny that the disease was spreading inside hospitals.

The news of Li's death triggered an online outpouring of praise and mourning for the doctor.

Many people also criticized the authorities. Some demanded that the police apologize. Others said it's too late for the authorities to express regrets about their poor handling of the outbreak.

Key words : another 41 tested positive
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200207_23/

Japan's health ministry says another 41 people aboard a quarantined cruise ship moored at Yokohama Port have tested positive for the new coronavirus. That brings the total number of confirmed cases on the vessel to 61.

The cruiser is carrying around 3,700 passengers and crew members. It has been quarantined since a man from Hong Kong was found to have been infected. The individual was diagnosed shortly after he disembarked in his home city.

Health officials have completed testing specimen samples from 273 people. The samples were taken from individuals who had developed symptoms, such as a fever or a cough. Travelers who had direct contact with individuals exhibiting symptoms were also tested.

Officials disclosed the approximate ages and nationalities of the newly infected people. Three are in the 20 to 40 age range. Three are in their 50s, eight are in their 60s, 21 are in their 70s, and 6 are in their 80s.

Twenty-one are from Japan and eight are US nationals. Five Australians, five Canadians, an Argentinian, and a British national are also on the list.

The health ministry plans to transport the newly diagnosed people to hospitals. Officials say no one is gravely ill.

Other passengers and crew members are being asked to remain on the ship for two weeks.

Key words : Abe emergency measure
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200207_32/

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says the government will draw up emergency measures to deal with the new coronavirus outbreak as early as next week.

On Friday, Abe emphasized that the government will give top priority to protecting the lives and health of the people, and said he wants to make decisions without hesitation on what can be done.

Abe was speaking after he received a series of recommendations from Liberal Democratic Party policy affairs chief Fumio Kishida and other officials.

They proposed improving inspection systems and developing simple diagnostic test kits. They also called for finance measures to support small and medium-sized tourism businesses that have been hit by a wave of cancellations.

Abe said the government will compile emergency measures based on these proposals as early as next week and will swiftly implement them by using reserve funds.

The prime minister added that the government will take all possible steps while keeping an eye on regional economies and tourism businesses.

Key words : uncertainty who won
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200207_35/

Uncertainty continues in the United States over who won the Democratic Party's presidential nomination contest in the state of Iowa.

The Iowa Democratic Party announced on Thursday night that former South Bend mayor Pete Buttigieg was in first place, with all precincts reporting.

It said Buttigieg won 26.2 percent, holding a slim lead of 0.1 percentage points over Senator Bernie Sanders, who won 26.1 percent.

Senator Elizabeth Warren followed with 18 percent and former vice president Joe Biden with 15.8 percent.

But the New York Times reported that the caucus results are "riddled with errors and inconsistencies." Vote counting was substantially delayed by technical problems following the caucuses on Monday.

US Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez called on party officials in Iowa to immediately begin a recanvass of the results.

But the Iowa Democratic Party is unlikely to do so unless requested by the candidates. CNN says they have until 1 p.m. Friday Eastern Time to file for a recanvass.

The situation has prompted US media to say they cannot declare a winner.

They include the Associated Press, which cited evidence that the Democratic Party has not accurately tabulated some of the results.

AP says it is impossible to determine a winner at this point because of the tight margin between Buttigieg and Sanders and the irregularities in the caucus process.

The candidates have meanwhile moved on to New Hampshire, the site of the next primary on Tuesday. The attention of American voters also appears to be shifting away from Iowa.

Key words : exports food record high
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20200207_39/

Japanese exports of food rose to a record high in 2019, but fell short of the government's target of 1-trillion yen.

Officials say overseas shipments last year amounted to 912.3 billion yen, or about 8.3 billion dollars. That's up 0.6 percent from the previous year.

Exports of rice increased 23 percent. Milk and dairy products were up 20.5 percent. Beef exports, including premium wagyu, rose 20 percent. Shipments of sake were up 5.3 percent.

But the overall rise was the smallest in the past seven years. Officials say shipments to Hong Kong, the largest importer of Japanese food, declined because of anti-government protests.

Exports to South Korea also dropped sharply due to a boycott of Japanese products amid souring ties between the two countries.

Key words : segmet wrapping up the top stories of the week
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