South Korea has set a record for daily Covid-19 cases at 2,434, breaking the previous record set last month, as the country grapples with a wave of infections that began in early July, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

Today's figures will exceed Thursday's to set a new record for daily Covid-19 cases, as there were already 2,924 cases confirmed as of 9pm, Yonhap news agency reported. The official daily tally is compiled at midnight.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum stressed the need for virus-prevention rules to be stricter as adherence could have been lax during this week's three-day holiday.