Snow began coating parts of the country early Tuesday, with up to 3 centimeters of snow per hour forecast to hit the greater Seoul area during the evening rush hour, the state weather agency said.

A heavy snow advisory was issued across the greater Seoul area as of 9 a.m., with up to 10 cm of snow expected to accumulate in the region. The advisory is given when the snowfall is expected to reach 5 centimeters or more within 24 hours.

As of 10 a.m., the interior ministry had upgraded its snow alert level to "caution" from "interest."

During the evening rush hour, snow of 1 to 3 cm per hour is expected to pile up across the capital, according to the KMA, warning of caution against heavy snowfall at times.

Morning lows were around minus 7 C to 0 C, and the daily highs are forecast to range from 1 to 10 C.

As the snow cloud belt that developed over the Yellow Sea moves inland, more regions will be under the influence of snow, and it will rain or snow in most parts of the country by the afternoon, the Korea Meteorological Administration said.

The rain or snow will continue into the night for most of the greater Seoul area and continue falling until Wednesday morning in the southern and eastern parts of Gyeonggi Province and the southwestern Jeolla provinces, including Gwangju. (Yonhap)