TOKYO (REUTERS) - More than half of Japanese companies believe the Tokyo Olympics, originally planned for this summer but postponed for a year due to the coronavirus, should be cancelled or put off again, a survey by a Japanese think-tank found.

Of some 13,000 companies that responded to the poll by Tokyo Shoko Research, 27.8 per cent said the sporting event should be cancelled while 25.8 per cent saw another postponement as desirable.

Japan lifted in late May a state of emergency imposed to stem the pandemic, as it recorded fewer infections, but cases started to increase again in July.

"With the end of the spread of infection nowhere in sight, companies are divided into for and against holding the event in 2021," the research group said in a report, published on Thursday (Aug 20).

Of the companies surveyed, 22.5 per cent believed the Tokyo Olympics should be held as planned while 18.4 per cent said they ought to be held with fewer spectators and 5.3 per cent said they should be held with no spectators.

The poll was conducted over the Internet between late July and early August.