560 People by 6 PM, 12 More Than Yesterday... Around 700 Expected Tomorrow

On the 11th, when 614 new COVID-19 cases were reported, continuing the three-day streak of over 600 cases, citizens visiting the temporary screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza are lining up to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Tae-min] As the spread of COVID-19 continues domestically, confirmed cases surged nationwide on the 15th as well.

According to the quarantine authorities, Seoul city, and other local governments, a total of 560 new confirmed COVID-19 cases were recorded nationwide from midnight to 6 p.m. on that day.

This is 12 more than the 548 cases recorded at the same time the previous day.

By region, 390 cases (69.6%) were in the metropolitan area, and 170 cases (30.4%) were in non-metropolitan areas.

By city and province, Gyeonggi had 194 cases, Seoul 184, Busan 36, Gyeongnam 35, Ulsan 28, Gyeongbuk 21, Jeonbuk 13, Incheon 12, Gangwon and Chungbuk 7 each, Chungnam 5, Gwangju, Daegu, and Jeonnam 4 each, and Daejeon and Jeju 3 each.

Among the 17 cities and provinces nationwide, Sejong has not reported any confirmed cases yet.

Since there is still time until midnight when the tally closes, the number of new confirmed cases announced at 0 a.m. on the 16th is expected to increase further to the mid-to-high 600s, possibly reaching around 700.

The previous day, 150 cases were added after 6 p.m., closing at a final count of 698.

Since the beginning of this month, the COVID-19 outbreak situation has worsened, entering the early stage of the "4th wave."

Daily new confirmed cases, which fluctuated between 300 and 400 until last month, have increased to the 500s, 600s, and even 700s, and the "infection reproduction number," which indicates the transmission power of the virus, has also been steadily rising.

From the 8th of this month to the previous day, the number of new confirmed cases over the past week recorded daily were 671 → 677 → 614 → 587 → 542 → 731 → 698, averaging 645.7 cases per day.

Among these, the daily average of locally transmitted confirmed cases, a key indicator for adjusting the "social distancing" level, was 624.6, exceeding the upper limit of the 2.5 level criteria (nationwide 400 to 500 or more, or rapid increase such as doubling of cases).

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