Seoul, Jul 4 (IANS): South Korea was on high alert as new coronvavirus cases exceeded 60 on Saturday for the second straight day, with infections outside the Seoul metropolitan area and cases from overseas showing no signs of slowdown.

Health authorities said the spread of the COVID-19 virus appears to be picking up speed, amid concerns the country's cases may return to an upward trajectory, reports Yonhap News Agency.

The country added 63 cases, which are composed of 36 local infections and 27 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 13,030, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said in a statement.

The number of locally transmitted infections fell 16 from 52 a day earlier, while cases from overseas rose 16 from 11, the statement said.

The number of cases affiliated with the US Forces Korea (USFK) reached 47 on Saturday, according to the Amercian military.

In extended efforts to get the COVID-19 virus under control, health authorities on Saturday made it obligatory for all crewmen to take virus tests when they leave their ships for rotation or their off days starting Monday.

Over the past two months, the densely populated Seoul and the surrounding area, which house around half of the country's 51-million population, took up most of the newly added cases here.

The trend has prodded health authorities to focus on curbing the spread of the virus in the greater Seoul area.

Last month, they decided to indefinitely apply toughened infection preventive measures in the region amid the growing number of patients from clubs and door-to-door businesses.

The country has carried out 1,319,523 tests since January 3.