Korea on Friday reported eight new imported cases of the novel coronavirus and a single locally transmitted case.

This brings the total number of COVID-19 cases to 10,774 as of midnight, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Four of the imported cases were confirmed at the airport upon arrival, and the rest were tested positive after they returned to their local communities in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province.

The locally transmitted case was reported in North Gyeongsang Province.

One patient at a hospital in Gyeonggi Province died on Thursday, bringing the total number of COVID-19 deaths in the country to 248.

A total of 9,072 patients have fully recovered so far, including 13 who were discharged on Thursday.

Some 623,069 people have been tested so far in Korea.

Daegu reported 6,852 cases, followed by 1,366 in North Gyeongsang Province, 678 in Gyeonggi Province, 634 in Seoul.

Women accounted for nearly 60 percent of the confirmed cases, while men reported a higher rate of deaths (2.98 percent) compared to women (1.84 percent).

By Kim So-hyun (sophie@heraldcorp.com)