▲ People line up to get tested for COVID-19 at a makeshift clinic on Feb. 20, 2022. (Yonhap)

coronavirus-additional cases

New infections dip below 100,000 amid omicron spread

SEOUL, Feb. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea logged fewer than 100,000 daily coronavirus cases on Monday, due largely to less testing over the weekend, amid concerns about the fast spread of the highly transmissible omicron variant.

The country reported 95,362 new COVID-19 infections, including 95,218 local cases, raising the total caseload to 2,058,184, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The number of the total cases exceeded the 2 million-mark about two years after the country reported the first COVID-19 cases in January 2020.

Monday's tally is down from 104,829 on Sunday when the country's new caseload surpassed a 100,000-mark for three days in a row. The number of new daily cases usually shrinks at the beginning of the week due to less testing over the weekend.

The death toll from COVID-19 came to 7,450, up 45 from a day earlier. The fatality rate was 0.36 percent, the KDCA said.

The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients was up 42 to 480.

South Korea's virus cases have spiked in recent weeks as the omicron variant has raged across the country, with the daily counts nearly doubling in just a week after surpassing 50,000 for the first time on Feb. 10.

The daily caseload exceeded 100,000 for the first time on Friday.

Despite the virus surge, the government decided Friday to extend the business hour curfews for cafes and restaurants by one hour to 10 p.m. in a bid to support pandemic-hit merchants.

The partially relaxed antivirus curbs, which took effect Saturday, will be in place until March 13, with the cap on private gatherings unchanged at six people.

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