The Foreign Ministry has stepped up efforts to disseminate information related to last Friday’s powerful earthquake to other countries, amid intensifying global concern over the potential leak of a massive amount of radiation from the troubled nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture, ministry officials said Wednesday.

The ministry is planning to implement measures such as increasing the number of press conferences in English to counter exaggerated and false rumors that could seriously affect travel and trade between Japan and other countries, they said.

It has already posted related information in English, Chinese and Korean on its website.

The ministry has held press conferences for foreign media every day since Sunday, a day after an explosion occurred at a reactor at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan.

Officials of the Foreign Ministry and the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry’s nuclear safety agency have called for calm, explaining radiation levels and other information to foreign news organizations.

The Foreign Ministry also plans to hold briefings for foreign embassies in Tokyo nearly every day until the situation calms down, the officials said.

The ministry has instructed Japanese embassies and consulates overseas to swiftly respond to inquiries from local media and provide information about the latest developments in Japan, they said.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Foreign Press Secretary Satoru Sato urged foreign reporters to act based on correct information, citing the need for the ministry to deal with overseas public opinion.