South Korea has posted a sharp increase in its coronavirus cases as it struggles to tame its fourth wave of infections amid the spread of new virus variants and summer vacations, reports Reuters.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) has reported 1,725 cases for Tuesday, up by more than 500 from a day before, as more tests have been conducted after the weekend.

Total infections have risen to 203,926, with 2,106 deaths.

Health authorities are concerned that people travelled about 6.4 per cent more last week compared with the week before, or about 34pc more than in early January, in the regions beyond the capital Seoul and its neighbouring areas, largely for summer vacations.