Photo/Illutration People wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus wait at pedestrian crossings on March 26 in Tokyo. (AP Photo)

Tokyo confirmed 376 new COVID-19 cases on March 26, according to metropolitan government officials.

The daily case count is up 73 from a week earlier at 303, marking the seventh day in a row the figure topped the week-earlier level.

The daily average for the week through March 26 totaled 330.3 cases, or 111.2 percent of the average for the preceding week.

The metropolitan government has set a goal of keeping the average at 70 percent of the previous week or lower.

In Tokyo, concerns of a major rebound in cases are growing. 

At a monitoring committee meeting of the metropolitan government on March 25, an infectious diseases expert noted how cases spread during the third wave after Christmas and year-end parties.

“If more people go out as usual for cherry blossom viewing parties, welcoming and farewell parties, graduation trips and other events, infections could spread more widely and rapidly than during the third wave,” said Norio Omagari, director of the Disease Control and Prevention Center under the National Center for Global Health and Medicine.

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