People wait in line to get tested for COVID-19 at a testing center in Gwangju, July 5. Yonhap

Korea's new coronavirus cases increased for the second straight day on Wednesday, as the virus spread at a faster pace amid eased social distancing restrictions.

The country added 19,371 new COVID-19 infections, including 224 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 18,433,359, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

Wednesday's tally is up from 6,253 on Monday and 18,147 on Tuesday, and nearly doubled from 10,455 a week ago.

The KDCA has said the pace of the virus' reproduction has recently increased amid waning immunity and eased social distancing rules.

The country added seven COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 24,583. The fatality rate stood at 0.13 percent.

The number of critically ill patients increased by seven to 61, the KDCA said. (Yonhap)