Anchor: The South Korean government says it will take a couple more days to monitor the current COVID-19 trend before deciding on social distancing measures for the beginning of February. The move comes as the number of daily cases remained above the high 400s amid clusters linked to a missionary group and others.
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: The Central Disaster Management Headquarters said on Friday that the government's social distancing guidelines to take effect on February 1 will be announced Sunday afternoon.

The government, which had planned to make the announcement on Friday as the current levels are set to expire on Sunday, delayed its decision amid a growth in the number of infection clusters. 

The Seoul metro area is currently under Level Two-point-Five, while the rest of the nation is under Level Two. Authorities were also to decide whether to extend a ban on gatherings of five or more people ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, which falls in mid-February.

As of 12:00 a.m. Friday, 469 additional people tested positive for COVID-19, raising the country's cumulative total to 77-thousand-395.

The daily increase, which dropped to the 300s earlier this week, climbed back to the upper 400s as at least 355 people linked to six unaccredited educational facilities run by a missionary group were confirmed to have caught the virus.

There are also other clusters emerging. In the southeastern city of Andong, 45 people tested positive in relation to a taekwondo facility, and another 67 at a nursing home in the port city of Busan.

Health Ministry spokesperson Son Young-rae explained that while the government tries to give a couple days' buffer time for businesses to adjust to revised measures, it will need the additional time to analyze whether the current uptick is a momentary spike or the start of a longer resurgence.

Noting it's difficult to characterize the current clusters as one-time events, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun pledged to thoughtfully determine the next steps, including considering the effectiveness of quarantine rules and their impact on people's livelihoods. 
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.