Daily COVID-19 cases fell below 300-thousand, in another indication that the omicron wave is beginning to decline.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said on Friday that 280-thousand-273 infections were reported throughout the previous day, including 48 cases from overseas. The total caseload came to 13-million-375-thousand-818.

The daily tally dropped by about 40-thousand from a day ago to fall below 300-thousand for the first time since Monday. The figure decreased about 60-thousand from a week ago and 126-thousand from two weeks ago.

The government is assessing that the omicron variant has passed its peak and is beginning to subside from late March.

Under the circumstances, the government announced on Friday that it has decided to ease the cap on private gatherings to ten from the current eight and relax the 11 p.m. curfew on business hours for restaurants and cafes to midnight.

The number of patients in critical care is down by 16 to one-thousand-299, but remained above 12-hundred for the sixth straight day.

Thursday saw 360 deaths from the virus, raising the death toll to 16-thousand-590. The fatality rate stands at zero-point-12 percent.

The occupancy rate of ICU beds for critically ill patients nationwide stood at 64-point-four percent as of 12 a.m. Friday.