Daily COVID-19 cases fell below 170-thousand on Friday, but the number of critical cases surpassed 600.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said on Friday that 165-thousand-890 cases were compiled throughout the previous day, including 141 cases from overseas. The total caseload came to two million-665-thousand-77.

The daily tally dropped by some four-thousand from a day ago and fell below 170-thousand after staying above the mark for two straight days.

The figure increased one-point-five times from a week ago and over three times from two weeks ago.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said on Friday that experts were expecting the figure to peak at 250-thousand in early or mid-March.

With the soaring infections, the number of critical patients rose by 74 to 655. The figure, which stayed in the 200s in the middle of the month, surpassed 600 for the first time in 40 days.

The ICU occupancy rate for critical COVID-19 patients also climbed to 40-point-eight percent as of 5 p.m. Thursday. The figure hovered around 15 percent early this month, but rose above 30 percent last Saturday and 40 percent on Friday.

Ninety-four deaths were reported in the past 24 hours, raising the death toll to seven-thousand-783. The fatality rate fell to zero-point-29 percent.

The number of home-treatment patients rose by some 62-thousand to about 650-thousand.