Japan's land and infrastructure minister says officials have begun to discharge water from dams in southwestern Japan as Typhoon Haishen is approaching the region.
US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer says it plans to seek approval for a vaccine for COVID-19 as soon as next month. But that would only be after the firm concludes the vaccine is effective.
Papua New Guinea (PNG) officially recorded zero new COVID-19 infections on Thursday, with the nation's total standing at 471 confirmed cases and five deaths, according to a press release from the PNG government late Thursday.
Asia has registered more than 100,000 deaths linked to the new coronavirus since it first emerged in December, according to an AFP tally based on official sources at 0800 GMT on Thursday.
