Seoul, Jan. 14, 2022, SPA -- South Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed above 4,000 for the third consecutive day and imported cases reached an all-time high Friday, prompting the government to extend part of toughened social distancing rules for three more weeks, Yonhap reported. The country added 4,542 new COVID-19 infections, including 4,133 local infections, raising the total caseload to 683,566, according to Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The number of imported cases hit a daily high of 409 on Friday amid the spread of omicron variant across the globe, according to KDCA. The country reported 49 more COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 6,259, according to the health authorities. The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients came to 659. It is the first time that the figure fell below 700 since end-November, KDCA said. Also on Friday, the government announced its decision to maintain a 9 p.m. curfew on restaurants and cafes while raising the limit of private gathering size to six from the current four. The revised rules will be in place from Monday through Feb. 6. --SPA 15:51 LOCAL TIME 12:51 GMT 0006 www.spa.gov.sa/w1678320