Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said on Friday that the government will extend current social distancing measures for another two weeks, including the ban on gatherings of five or more people. 

The extension would activate starting next Monday and run for two weeks.

Chung made the announcement during a government meeting on COVID-19 responses in Seoul, expressing concerns there were no signs of a letup in coronavirus infection clusters across the nation. 

The prime minister called for citizens' understanding of the decision, noting that daily COVID-19 cases remained in the 300s and 400s for eight consecutive weeks. He added the number may surge if the nation lets its guard down now. 
 
He said the government will utilize the next two weeks to conduct intensive on-site inspections of multi-use facilities and factories hiring foreign workers.

The greater Seoul area will remain under Level Two distancing and the rest of the country will be subject to Level One-point-Five.