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n employee at Samsung Electronics Co.'s chip production line in Yongin, south of Seoul, was confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus on Monday, a local government said.

   The worker in his 20s first showed symptoms of the COVID-19 virus last week and took a test on Sunday, according to the city government of Hwaseong, where he resides.

   After the result came out Monday, he was taken to a hospital and the authorities are tracing his contacts.

   The world's largest maker of smartphones and memory chips reportedly sent home his colleagues immediately and carried out disinfection work. It is not immediately known if the plant would be shut down.

   He last visited the plant, located in the district of Giheung, on Saturday, Hwaseong officials said. 

   He is the first virus case among Samsung employees at the Giheung plant, though an employee of its cafeteria run by a contractor firm tested positive for the virus late last month.

   As of Monday, South Korea had 9,661 confirmed virus cases, including 158 deaths, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). (Yonhap)