No, if I'm reading the quote correctly: "To date, more than 17,000 people have taken their own lives this year in Japan. October self-inflicted deaths were up

No, if I'm reading the quote correctly: "To date, more than 17,000 people have taken their own lives this year in Japan. October self-inflicted deaths were up 600 year on year, with female suicides, about a third of the total, surging over 80%." that's an increase from 110 people in a month to 200 roughly, if the 80% is of the rise in the percentage of the female suicides and not of the total amount, if I read right. Overall it doesn't seem like suicide has exploded, just that Japan had a downwards trend that reversed back up to old levels. Not very newsworthy at all, imo.