The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.

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Japan ships 1.24 mil. doses of vaccine to Taiwan

TOKYO - Japan shipped 1.24 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Taiwan in an effort to help the self-ruled island alleviate its struggles in procuring shots, the Foreign Ministry said Friday.

The gratis vaccine doses, developed by AstraZeneca Plc of Britain and manufactured domestically through license production, will arrive in Taipei by air later Friday, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told a press conference.

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China raps Taiwan for accepting vaccines from Japan

BEIJING - The Chinese government on Friday criticized Taiwan for acquiring more than 1 million doses of the novel coronavirus vaccine developed by Britain's AstraZeneca Plc from Japan.

The Taiwanese government, led by the Democratic Progressive Party, "has blocked vaccine imports from the mainland," Beijing said in a statement. The AstraZeneca vaccines are set to arrive in Taiwan later Friday.

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Japan's April household spending rises record 13.0% on year

TOKYO - Japan's household spending in April rose a record 13.0 percent from a year earlier as consumption rebounded from a sharp decline triggered by the initial coronavirus shock last year, but remained at around pre-pandemic levels, government data showed Friday.

The margin of increase was the largest since comparable data became available in January 2001, with households with two or more people spending an average 301,043 yen ($2,700) in real terms, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said.

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Tokyo zoo announces panda pregnancy as it reopens after virus closure

TOKYO - A giant panda at the capital's Ueno Zoological Gardens may be pregnant, Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike said Friday, the same day the zoo reopened after a five-month closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The female panda Shin Shin, 15, was removed from public display Friday. She and 15-year-old Ri Ri, a couple on loan from China, already produced the now 3-year-old Xiang Xiang, born in June 2017 at the zoo.

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Japan PM Suga's Tokyo Olympic reception scrapped

TOKYO - A reception for overseas dignitaries scheduled to be hosted by Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Aug. 8, the day of the Tokyo Olympic closing ceremony, has been canceled, a Cabinet member said Friday.

"We will not basically do (an event) where people gather and that involves eating and drinking from the viewpoint of infection prevention," Olympic minister Tamayo Marukawa said at a regular press conference.

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Japan to extend quarantine for travelers from Britain to 6 days

TOKYO - Japan's government said Friday it will extend the quarantine period for travelers who have recently been to Britain from three days to six days next week to prevent the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus variant first found in India.

Those who have been to Britain within 14 days of arrival will be required to stay at a government-designated facility and be tested twice for coronavirus starting from Monday, the government said.

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G-7 to start 2-day finance talks with focus on int'l corporate tax

TOKYO - Finance ministers from the Group of Seven industrialized nations are set to start a two-day in-person meeting on Friday in London and discuss the introduction of a global minimum corporate tax rate.

In addition to taxation issues, "continuing support for vulnerable countries" amid the global economic recovery from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and "joint action to ensure tackling climate change is prioritized" are also among the agenda items, the British government said in a press release on Thursday.

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Chinese vessels sail near Senkakus for record 112 days in row

NAHA, Japan - Chinese coast guard vessels were spotted near the Senkaku Islands on Friday for the 112th straight day, the longest streak since the uninhabited islets were brought under state control in September 2012, the Japan Coast Guard said.

Four ships were sailing in the so-called contiguous zone outside Japan's territorial waters around the islets in the East China Sea, prompting Tokyo to condemn Beijing's increasingly assertive claims over them.

==Kyodo

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