TOKYO, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Tokyo metropolitan government on Thursday reported a record 888 new daily coronavirus cases, as concerns continue to grow about the increasing strain on the medical system as cases in the capital continue to surge.

The last figure has surpassed the previous record of 821 recorded on Dec. 17, bringing the city of 14 million's cumulative total of infections to 54,018.

Since Dec. 17, the Tokyo metropolitan government has raised its alert level regarding the strain on the medical system to the highest on its four tier scale.

Despite the recent surge in virus cases and the strain on the medical system, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has said there was no need to declare a national state of emergency, although further restrictions on bars and restaurants may be put in place.

But such is the severity of the situation here that a "medical state of emergency" was declared by the Japan Medical Association and eight other health organizations on Monday.

While COVID-19 figures in the capital continuing to rise exponentially, the same is true nationwide, with Japan the previous day confirming a daily record 3,271 COVID-19 cases, not including those related to a cruise ship quarantined near Tokyo earlier in the year.

The nation's death toll also marked a single-day high at 56 on Wednesday.