Death toll from Kumamoto earthquake rises to 30: Japanese PM

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Thursday that the death toll from the recent powerful earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture has risen to 30.

Speaking at a meeting of the government's emergency disaster management headquarters, Takaichi said the figure, as of 12:30 local time, included people whose deaths are still under investigation to determine whether they were directly related to the 7.1-magnitude tremor.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 struck Kumamoto Prefecture at 16:27 local time (1927 GMT) on Tuesday at a depth of about 10 km, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

Authorities continue rescue and relief operations in the southwestern prefecture as they assess the extent of damage caused by Tuesday's earthquake.

Death toll from Kumamoto earthquake rises to 30: Japanese PM

The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, strengthened 7 pips to 6.7892 against the U.S. dollar Thursday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.

In China's spot foreign exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by two percent from the central parity rate each trading day.

The central parity rate of the yuan against the U.S. dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day.

Chinese yuan strengthens to 6.7892 against USD Thursday