Japan reports its first death from coronavirus

[TOKYO] Japan reported its first death from the novel coronavirus after a woman in her 80s died Thursday, Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said.

The woman was being treated for a separate condition and doctors discovered post-mortem that she tested positive, Mr Kato said.

The woman has no travel records to Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak in China, and authorities are looking into how she contracted the virus, Kyodo news agency said.

The death marks the third fatality from the virus outside mainland China, with the others being in Hong Kong and the Philippines.

There are at least 247 confirmed cases in Japan, with most of the infections aboard Carnival Corp's Diamond Princess, the largest infection cluster outside China.

BLOOMBERG