Tthe nationwide total now excees 42,000, more than 1,000 people have died. Health Ministry Officials say more than 4,000 people were being treated for the virus at hospitals as of last wednesday. The figure was just under 700 on july 1st. Since then patients in tokyo have quadrupled, but in terms of increase, other pleeskts have feared mmuch worse. Patients in oh sasaka jumped 20fold. The Health Minister says jjapan currently has enough hospital beds to cope, but he also says the situation needs to be closely monitored with some hospitals increasingly under strain. Some local governments are asking residents and businesses to do their part to curb the spread of the virus. In tokyo the governor is requesting barsrs and restauran to close by 10 00 p. M. As our next story shows, its pushing many establishments to the brink. Reporter its been an anxious few months when sales plunged after the government declared a state of emergency. As rrestrictions gradually ease, business was finally starting o pick up. Translator customers were slowly coming back, and we were operating at full capacity. But shortening our hours will cause a lot of suffering. Reporter its a dilemma facing restaurants, bars, and karaoke parlors across tokyo. Officials say those that comply will be eligible for a 2,000 subsidy. He says its not enough, claiming he has existing reservations that extend beyond the requested operating hours. Translator we have a reservation for 14 people. If they cancel, we lose 70,000 yen. Its quite a big loss for us. So its tough. Reporter tokyo isnt the only prefecture asking people to make sacrifices. Osaka, aichi, and okinawa officials are also asking businesses to restrict their hours. Translator to be honest, i dont want to obey thehe reques but i afraidid we might become an epicenter of cluster infections. Reporter complicating the situation is that compliance is vvoluntary. Many reststaurants hhave alread indicated theyll ignore the request, citing the financial burden theyve already experienced. Translator restaurants that dont close earlier will get the customers, and thats unfair. Id prefer it if the government issued an order rather than a request. I think that would be much more effective. Reporter it also forces customers to make a difficult decision. Translator if there are too many restrictions, the impact on businesses could be huge. It makes me question whether we should eat out. Translator i dont think theres really a choice. We must comply with the request so the situation doesnt get any worse. Reporter last month, the national govovernorss associati urged the Central Government to change the law so they could enforce their requests, but the government says now is not the time to discuss the issue. For now restaurant and bar owners are being put into an unenviable position, having to decide whether to Prioritize Public Health or their livelihoods. Nchts nhk has learned that japanese nationals living in russia wont be able to return to japan this year because of the pandemic. A total of about 30 people were scheduled to visit japan on three separate occasions. Dozens of japanese have lived there since the end of world war ii. Normally the japanese government helps the residents return to japan for about two weeks every year, but the Health Ministry has decided to cancel the visits because of the pandemic. The ministry made the decision based on details about the number of infections on sakhalin and because residents are at high risk due to their age. A japanese pet insurer says two dogs its looking after tested positive for the coronavirus. Health Officials Say this is a first for pets in japan. They say the dogs came from two households in tokyo in late july. The insurer is offering a service to take care of pets of people infected with the coronavirus. The company says it cant rule out the possibility that the positive pcr test for the dogs were the result of environmental contamination. It says the dogs havent shown any symptoms and they were kept separated from other pets. One of them has already showed a negative result in a second test. In the United States the centers for Disease Control and prevention says a small number of cats and dogs have been infected, mainly after contact with people with the virus. Officials say the risk of animals transmitting the virus to humans is low. More than 18 Million People worldwide have been infected, a quarter of them in the u. S. Parents there are wondering whether its safe to send their children back to school. One of the latest outbreaks serves as a warning that children arent immune. More from nhk worlds catherine kobayashi. Reporter an ad for this summer camp suggested children prepare for the memorie the memomoes t they left with e not what theyd hoped for. I didnt understand how it could have happened based on the precautions and the space. What were going to do to keep your camper safe reeporter researchers with the centers for Disease Control analalyzed whatat happened at t camp. They found more than 300 children arrived there in late june, but they didnt wear masks, and windows and doors were not left open. A teenaged employee developed chills. Then Staff Members started sending campers home. Among children and staff for whom results were available,e, more thanan threeequarters, 2 people tested popositive. They dididnt do alll thee s around ventilation and getting kids to wear masks. So if you dont do those thingn, absolutely, this is not a surprise. Reporter the cdc studydy conrrmed oupsps o childr canan lead to outbreaks. Teachers were already worried. Its just not safe. I think at the end of the day, what it comes down to is were scared. Reporter educators in new york harbor similar fefears. Theyre preparing to welcome some students back parrt time while teachihing online classes too. Steepbystep, were gogoing continue to improve this plan. It is a big undertaking, but its all about health and safety first. Reporter many parents fear the planan may not be enough. As they send them off to school, they wonder what their children might bring home. Catherine kobayashi, nhk world, new york. The japanese governments top spokesperson says that the country will continue to strongly urge south korea to resolve a wartime labor lawsuit as soon as possible. Sugas comment comes after an order against nippon steel took effect in south korea on tuesday. Translator the legal procedure related to the Supreme Court ruling is clearly a breach of international law. The order to seize the firms assets would have a serious consequence on bilateral relations. We must avoid such a situation. Suga says the government will take all possible measures to protect japanese compmpanies economic activities. The issue stems from a ruling by south koreas Supreme Court in 2018. 8. It ordered nippon steel to pay over 80,000 each in compensation to four south koreans. They werre forrced to work inin companynys steel m mills durin world war ii. But the japanese government says any right to claims was settled completely and finally in 1965 when the two countries normalized ties. The order includes a seizure of stocks of the companys joint venture established with south korean major steel maker posco. Nippon steel says it will appeal the asset seizure procedures. South korean media reports that the actual procedures to sell off the assets will likely take several months. China is responding to the u. S. Move last week to slap sanctions on a Chinese Organization and two individuals over alleged human rights abuses against uighurs and other ethnic minorities. The two countries relations continue to be strained over a variety of issues. A Chinese ForeignMinistry Spokesperson condemned the u. S. Action as a gross interference in chinas internal affairs. Translator china urges the u. S. To immediately withdraw its wronong decisision. If the u. S. Side is bent on behaving like this, the chinese side will resolutely fight back. The Trump Administration said last friday that it would impose an asset freeze and travel restrictions on the Xinjiang Production and construction corps or xpccc as welll a as cut and forormer officcials. The xpcc is in charge of the security and development of the uighur autonomous region. The u. S. Administration accused the individuals and xpcc of detaining a large number of uighurs in the region, in grave violation of human rights. China has denied mistreatment of the Minority Group and said the camps provide vocational training. Llast month, the Trump Administrationon imposed simila sanctions on four people including Senior Chinese Communist Party officials in n sometthi something jing. China responded in kind with penalties against four americans, including senators known for their hard line stance against china. A u. N. Report says north korea has probably developed a Nuclear Device small enough to fit inside the warhead of ballistic missiles. A panel of experts presented an interim report covering six months of studies to the u. N. Security councils north Korea Sanctions Committee on monday. The report says north korea continues to produce highly enriched uranium and construct an experimental light water reactor. When it comes to the miniatuturized nuclea dedevicest says several Member States made the assessment. The findings back up japans own assessment in its defense white paper last year that north korea may have already developed Nuclear Warheads small enough to be loaded into ballistic missiles. The u. N. Report does not identify the types of missilles the nuclear d devices might be designed for, such as Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles which require a higher level of technology. To the italian city of genoa where a newbriddge haas been inaugurratedfollowiing the ccollapse ofof the previous struucture two o years ago 43 people died in the august 2018 tragedy along an expressway connecting northern italy with sououthern france. The collapse was blamed on poor maintenance. The new bridge, about 1 kilometer long, was completed in only 16 monthhs. Poignantly, it features 43 lamps, one for each victim. Their names were read out at mondays ceremony followed by a prayer. The Prime Minister and other officials were in attendance. Turning to Major League Baseball and unwelcomed news for japanese player shohei ohtani. The l. A. Stars third regular season as a pitcher could be over after he hurt his arm muscles. Ohtani felt discomfort in his pitching arm during a game against the Houston Astros on sunday. He underwent an mri examination. The angels say it will be four to six weeks before he can get back the training as a pitcher. The regular season ends in late september. Ohtani is no stranger to injury. He returned to the pitchers mounds this season after surgery on his right elbow in october 2018. The team is keeping an eye on his condition. They hope he m might b be well enough to pllay as a desiignate hitter. A typhoon has made landfall in eastern china bringing strong winds and flooding rainfall. Our meteorologist sayaka mori joins us to explain where the storm is heaeaded. The second typhoon of the year made landfall across eastern portions of china. The system brought heavy rainfall to many places of eastern china, the center is now near shanghai. Hagupit is no longer a typhoon, a severe Tropical Storm packing winds of 90 kilometers. It will likely weaken further as it moves over land. The star will likely move over eastern china and reach the ocean. As we go into thursday, as a Tropical Storm, hagupit could make the second landfall in the korean peninsula. The center will likely move over north korea and south korea. It will likely move over seoul or pyongyang. The estimated rainfall is going to be very significant. For example, eastern china may see an additional 200 millimete millimeters. Even heavier rain is on the way across the korean peninsula. Pyongyang and north korea might see more than 400 millimeters of rainfall. This region, especially northern portions of south korea experienced more than 500 millimeters of rain since the start of august, so heavy rain will likely raise the potential for flooding and . H landslides en further. The critical conditions could batter north korea and south korea as we go into thursday. It is another hot day in japan on tuesday. The high rose to 35. 18 kel toe. The highest temperature of the nation was recorded in dazaifu, 36. 2 there. On wednesday its going to be even higher. Tokyos high 34, kyoto 38 degrees. Sapp sapporo will likely see rainfall because of hagupit. A water spout was seen off the coast of belgium. Take a look at thihis footage. It was caught on cameraa moonda nenear the coast of belgium. Strongng thunderstorms near the region helpeped to twigger the twister over the north sea. No injuries or damage were reported. Conditions will be mild across the low countries, but instead italy and the Balkan Peninsula could see thunderstorms and even torrnadoes as we go into wednesday morning. Temperatures are going to be as follo follows. Thats it for me. Have a nice day. One last story. Octopus fishermen in southwestern japan have been busy where their slippery catches as the season peaks. Pots trap the creatures on the seabed. The fishing season usually lasts from late july to august in the straits off key usual she city. Octopus in the area tend to be strong due to fast moving churning tides. Anan experienced fishermen says hes catching bigger animals this year. Translator our octopus tastes good when eaten raw as sue shimmy. I want people to enjoy this delicacy. The catch will be shipped to local markets and restaurants. A one kilo octopus fetches around 1500 yen or 14. Thats all for this edition of nhk newsline. Im Yoshi Ogasawara in tokyo. Thanks for watching and do stay with us for more. This is newsline biz, im gene otani. The coronavirus pandemic is hurting japans exports. Shipments of food items as well as agriculture, foresttry and Fishery Products were down in the first half of the year. The Agriculture Ministry says exports fell 8. 2 from the same period last year to about 3. 9 billion. The it says the decline is largely due to temporary closures of japanese restaurants abroad. Shipments of Seafood Products including scallops and yellowtail dropped nearly 30 . Japanese saki and beef each fell by more than 20 . Translator exports to asia are picking up, but shipments to the u. S. And European Union decreased sharply, and the situation iis very severe. Well worork more closely with trading firms to achieve ourur target. The government earlier this year had set a goal of more than doubling the value of the annual exports in those categories to about 19 billion by 2025. 1y57 pans largest steal maker had its most painful quarter. Nippon steel sent demand crashing. The company says it lost 42 billion yen or nearly 400 million. Thattthe worstst result for tt quarter since the company was launched in its current form in october 2012. The steel maker is expecting even tougher times ahead, forecasting a net loss of 200 billion yen or nearly 1. 9 billion for the half year through september. Softbank group has had to refile its taxes in japan after its first effort more than a year ago was short by about 40 billion yen or nearly 380 million. Sources say softbank underreported its income for the fiscal year that ended march 2019. They say the group made miscalculations in Foreign Exchange losses and booked expenses in the wrong period. Softbank told nhk it submitted the corrected filingg after beig told of the problem by the tokyo tax authorities. The japanese government wants bullet trains to have more space for passengers with physical disabilities. The transport minister has suggested the trains on the busiest line connecting tokyo and osaka should each accommodate up to 6 wheelchairs. The idea was mentioned while visiting a rail yard in tokyo, Central Japan Railway on monday. The companys operator of the shinkansen line. The government is preparing a new regulation that would oblige areas for four wheelchairs per train. But the users asked them to increase the number to six for the 16car trains. The trains are longer and have more seats than counterparts on either lies. The ministry will draw up the new barrierfree steps this summer. The coronavirus pandemic has devastated the global economy, but startups around the world are coming up with new ideas to deal with the crisis. In thailand, a major bank heldd an Online Meeting for startup firms seeking investors who can help them realize their goals. Nhk world went to find out more. Reporrter the ceo of a startup that organizes events such as food festivals, concerts and marathons. His business went from over 200 engagements a month to almost zero due to the pandemic. Ticket machines sit unused in his office. With the future uncertain, he takes part in an Online Meeting that matches startups with investors. He presents ideas on how to take his Company Forward in this harsh new environment, telling the investors he can shift some of his activities online. One new idea is a life streamed event for young people looking for an adventure during these stayathome times. Today were bringing guests here to discover with us what is her here. Reporter his crew carry cameras that let viewers search for ghostsn an andoneed building. Rreporter tthis is justst of manany ononline eventts t tt he come up with. The revenue so far is small, but he hopes this is just the beginning. For us even with Online Events or online experiences, its still not enouugh as compared to offline, but we see a continuous growth in terms of the growing revenue for online. Reporter another entrepreneur has developed a business that can help people who have been infected with the coronavirus. The president of the tech Startup Association created an online plplatform that coonnect servrvices offered by some 30 firms. One of them directs patients to doctors who can give Health Checks online. Another firm started a service that hells locate hotels that let people at risk of covid19 stay and self isolate. Translator during the pandemic we realized that hospitals were under a lot of pressure. So we saw an opportunity to utilize startup expertise in different ways to ease that pressure. Reporter thailands startups are facing an unprecedented challenge. Many may see their dreams crushed, but some may be driven to innovate further and come out of the crisis even stronger. Nhk world, bangkok. Lets have a look at the markets. Frorom thee neslslin biz m in tokyo, i speculation mounts in spain over the whereabouts of the countrys former king. One carlos announced he has left the country amid a financial scandal. China accuses the u. S. Of bullying over tiktok. Donald trump said he would ban the video sharing