South Korea’s daily new coronavirus cases edged down for the fifth consecutive day on Tuesday but authorities expressed concern over a rise in untraceable transmissions and a growing number of patients in critical condition.
“This phenomenon serves as a strong warning that we may contract the virus at any place as we are engaging in daily activities in normal circumstances,” Suh said. “We are dealing with a more dangerous situation than any time. Please remember that only by pausing our daily routine and actively pursuing distancing, we can protect ourselves,” he said.
South Korea orders striking doctors back to work as cases surgeMeanwhile, the country’s economy shrunk by a seasonally adjusted 3.2 per cent in the April-June period from the previous quarter, revised central bank data showed, the sharpest contraction since the final quarter of 2008. South Korean exports fell for a sixth straight month in August.
To counter a slump in exports and the retail sector, the government said it planned to boost spending on welfare and jobs by 10.7 per cent, and allocate 11.9 per cent more on social infrastructure projects.