South Korea will ban using disposable products in cafes and restaurants from April, which was temporarily permitted due to the COVID-19 pandemic situation, the Ministry of Environment said in a statement on Friday.
The global number of new COVID-19 cases increased sharply by 71 percent last week compared to the previous week, but the number of new deaths decreased by 10 percent, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday.
France and Italy reported record daily numbers of coronavirus infections on Wednesday, as Europe struggles with a surge in cases believed to be fueled by the Omicron variant.