On the 4th, zero Chinese entrants between China and Korea... First time in 28 years since diplomatic relations in 1992

Average Daily Number of Chinese Entrants and Exiters Drops from 33,000 in January to Zero in Three Months

Statistics of Entry and Exit between China and Korea from January to April 2020 (Provided by the Ministry of Justice)

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] It has been confirmed that on the 4th, Saturday, there were no Chinese nationals entering South Korea from China or departing China from South Korea. This is the first time in 28 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between South Korea and China in August 1992.

According to the Ministry of Justice on the 6th, from 0:00 to 24:00 on the 4th, there was not a single Chinese national who entered South Korea from China or departed China from South Korea.

Until January of this year, before the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), the average daily number of Chinese nationals entering South Korea from China was 15,000, and the average daily number of Chinese nationals departing China from South Korea was about 18,000.

The average daily number of Chinese entrants and exits, which reached 33,000, dropped to zero in just three months.

In the past week, the number of Chinese entrants showed a gradual decline: 464 on the 29th of last month, 50 on the 30th, 171 on the 31st, 178 on the 1st, 72 on the 2nd, 255 on the 3rd, and 0 on the 4th, averaging 170.

During the same period, the number of Chinese departures was 141 on the 29th, 137 on the 30th, 87 on the 31st, 175 on the 1st, 92 on the 2nd, 116 on the 3rd, and 0 on the 4th, averaging 107.

The number of South Korean nationals traveling to and from China in the past week was also very low. On the 4th, when the number of Chinese entrants and exits was zero, a total of 49 people entered South Korea from China; among them, 37 were South Koreans and the remaining 12 were foreigners who were not Chinese. On the same day, among the 70 people who departed South Korea for China, only 27 were South Koreans.

A Ministry of Justice official stated, "Although a complete ban on Chinese nationals entering was not imposed, the strong entry restrictions effectively resulted in a near shutdown of entry and exit."

Earlier, on February 4th, the government implemented entry restrictions by blocking entry of passport holders issued in Hubei Province, China, where COVID-19 originated, and suspended the validity of about 80,000 valid visas issued by the Consulate General in Wuhan.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.