Confirmed cases exceed 25,000 by 9 PM... Highest since May (Update)

'Doubling' Continues to Double Every Week

On the 17th, citizens waiting for testing at the COVID-19 screening clinic at Gangnam-gu Public Health Center in Seoul. The Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that as of midnight on the same day, there were 40,342 new confirmed COVID-19 cases. This number is twice as high as the same day a week earlier (the 10th, 20,410 cases). Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] As of 9 PM on the 17th, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases nationwide exceeded 25,000. The 'doubling' phenomenon, where cases double compared to the previous week, continues, raising concerns about a resurgence.

According to Seoul and other local governments, from midnight to 9 PM on the same day, 25,079 people across 17 cities and provinces nationwide were confirmed positive for COVID-19. This is double the 12,213 cases reported on the 10th, one week ago, and 4.26 times the 5,880 cases reported two weeks ago on the 3rd. It is the largest number recorded for a Sunday at the same time since May 8th, when 20,118 cases were reported.

Although this is fewer than the 38,928 cases reported at the same time the previous day, this is attributed to a decrease in testing on Sunday. Typically, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases decreases on weekends and Mondays due to reduced testing and then rises again midweek.

By region, 15,008 cases (59.8%) were reported in the metropolitan area, and 10,071 cases (40.2%) in non-metropolitan areas. Specifically, Gyeonggi had 8,186 cases, Seoul 4,897, Incheon 1,925, Gyeongnam 1,164, Gyeongbuk 1,070, Daegu 951, Jeju 815, Chungnam 789, Daejeon 758, Chungbuk 717, Busan 688, Jeonbuk 683, Gangwon 678, Ulsan 609, Gwangju 575, Jeonnam 546, and Sejong 28.

Once the day's tally is finalized, the total is expected to reach the high 20,000s. From the 11th to the 17th, the daily new confirmed cases were recorded as 12,681 → 37,347 → 40,255 → 39,186 → 38,882 → 41,310 → 40,342, averaging 35,714 cases per day.

Meanwhile, as the COVID-19 resurgence phase begins, from the 18th, the fourth dose vaccination target will expand from those aged 60 and above and immunocompromised individuals to include people in their 50s and those aged 18 and above with underlying health conditions. Same-day vaccination through leftover vaccines and advance reservations are available, with advance reservation vaccinations starting next month.

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