Photo/Illutration Many box seats are roped off during the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament in Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan on Jan. 17 to prevent novel coronavirus infections. (The Asahi Shimbun)

Tokyo confirmed 1,204 new cases of novel coronavirus infections on Jan. 18, down from 1,592 on the previous day, but still hovering above 1,000 for the sixth consecutive day.

The capital listed 143 patients in serious condition, up five from the previous day.

Tokyo defines serious cases as those requiring a ventilator or a machine called extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), which circulates blood through an artificial lung.