New Confirmed Cases 1,540 'Highest Monday Count'...Non-Capital Region Share 44.6% (Update)

Severe Cases and Deaths Surge by 12 and 9 Compared to Previous Day

On the 9th, citizens are lining up to get tested at a temporary screening clinic in front of Seoul City Hall. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] The number of new COVID-19 cases in South Korea has set the highest record for the day of the week for three consecutive days. Despite the metropolitan area entering its fifth week under social distancing level 4, the spread has not been contained, raising concerns that the weekend effect will disappear starting tomorrow (the 11th), potentially leading to nearly 2,000 new cases.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight on the 10th, the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases increased by 1,540 from the previous day, totaling 213,987. Of these, 1,476 were locally transmitted cases and 64 were imported. The number of locally transmitted cases in the metropolitan area decreased to the 800s, with Seoul reporting 356, Gyeonggi 398, and Incheon 64 cases.

On the other hand, the non-metropolitan areas continue to experience a strong spread, with their share of new cases rising to 44.6%. Among the non-metropolitan regions, Gyeongnam reported the highest number with 110 new cases, and Busan, which was elevated to social distancing level 4, recorded triple-digit cases at 105. Other regions reported cases as follows: Daegu 78, Chungnam 66, Gyeongbuk 57, Daejeon and Ulsan 50 each, Chungbuk 41, Jeonbuk 28, Jeonnam 24, Gangwon 22, Gwangju 13, Jeju 10, and Sejong 4.

There were 64 additional imported cases, with 13 detected during quarantine and 51 confirmed in the community. Among them, 35 were Korean nationals and 29 were foreigners.

The total number of tests conducted the previous day exceeded 150,000. At temporary screening clinics set up in the metropolitan area, 86,416 tests were performed, confirming 224 cases, while 14,694 tests were conducted at non-metropolitan temporary screening clinics, identifying 124 cases.

With the increase in confirmed cases, the number of critically ill patients and deaths is also rising sharply. The number of critically ill patients increased by 12 from the previous day to 379. The cumulative death toll rose by 9 to 2,134.

Meanwhile, according to the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team, 433,768 people received their first vaccine dose the previous day. The cumulative number of first-dose recipients reached 21,371,194, representing a first-dose vaccination rate of 41.6%. Among them, 173,134 people completed their vaccination, bringing the total number of fully vaccinated individuals to 7,894,351, with a completion rate of 15.4% of the population.

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