SEOUL-- South Korea has reported nearly 2,600 coronavirus infections involving people who tested positive for COVID-19 even after being fully vaccinated, health authorities said Tuesday.

Out of more than 7.4 million people who have received the full-dose vaccine regimen, there were 2,399 breakthrough cases, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

The rate of breakthrough cases occurring in people in their 30s was the highest at 0.075 percent, with the rate decreasing among the elderly, the KDCA said.

The KDCA said similar cases may increase as the country's vaccine rollout revs up, though the proportion of breakthrough cases is extremely low.

Since its nationwide inoculation campaign in late February, 26.3 million people, or 51.2 percent of the population, have received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccines, and 12.28 million people have been fully vaccinated, the KDCA said.

The rate of breakthrough cases occurring is 0.035 percent, and the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risk of becoming a breakthrough case, the authorities said.

The authorities said even after full vaccination, a person can be infected with COVID-19. They also said those who are classified as breakthrough infection cases have mild symptoms or are asymptomatic.

Source: Yonhap News Agency