South Korea reports daily record of over 5,000 new COVID-19 infections

Women wearing masks walk in a shopping district amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Seoul, South Korea, November 29, 2021. REUTERS/Heo Ran

SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea reported a new daily record of 5,123 new coronavirus cases, as it battles to contain a sharp rise in patients with severe symptoms and stave off the Omicron https://www.reuters.com/world/global-spread-omicron-cases-associated-travel-curbs-2021-11-29 variant, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said on Wednesday.

The government on Monday shelved plans to further relax COVID-19 curbs because of the strain on its healthcare system from rising hospitalisations and deaths as well as the possible threat posed by the new variant.