COVID-19 Cases Reach 2,000s in a Week... 1.5 Million Vaccine Doses Arrive from Romania

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] The number of new domestic COVID-19 cases in South Korea has risen back to the 2,000 range. This is the first time in a week since the 2,154 cases recorded on the 25th of last month.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) announced that as of midnight on the 1st, 2,025 new domestic COVID-19 cases were confirmed, bringing the total to 253,445. Of these, 1,992 were domestic transmissions and 33 were imported cases. Due to a decrease in testing over weekends and holidays, the number of confirmed cases tends to be lower at the beginning of the week but surges again starting Wednesday, a pattern that has been repeating.

In particular, the spread in the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area remains uncontrolled. By region, Seoul reported 662 cases, Gyeonggi 630, and Incheon 123, totaling 1,415 cases (71.0%) in the metropolitan area, accounting for more than 70% of domestic cases. Outside the metropolitan area, 86 cases were reported in Chungnam, and 68 cases each in Busan and Ulsan, totaling 577 cases (29.0%). The death toll increased by 7 from the previous day, and the number of critically ill patients reached 399.

The health authorities are on high alert for the possibility of further spread as the proportion of cases in the metropolitan area has risen back to the 70% range, and the highly transmissible India-originated 'Delta variant' is gaining ground. With the Chuseok holiday approaching, large-scale nationwide movement could further increase the scale of infections. The government plans to announce adjusted social distancing measures that will apply for one month, including the Chuseok holiday, on the 3rd.

Meanwhile, the government announced that through vaccine cooperation with Romania, a total of 1,503,000 doses of vaccines, including 1,053,000 doses of Pfizer and 450,000 doses of Moderna, will arrive at Incheon International Airport on the 2nd and 8th. On the 2nd, 526,500 doses of Pfizer vaccine will be delivered, and on the 8th, 526,500 doses of Pfizer and 450,000 doses of Moderna vaccines will arrive together. The 1,503,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will be used for vaccinations targeting those aged 18 to 49 as soon as they are supplied domestically.

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