The coldest weather of the season swept across the nation on Wednesday with temperatures dropping below freezing in some areas in Gangwon Province, east of Seoul, the state weather agency said.

The lowest daily temperatures fell to around 5 C in most of the country, while residents in inland mountain areas experienced a morning low of around zero and a mix of frost and ice, the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said.

The morning low dipped to minus 1.3 C in the Daegwallyeong district, in Gangwon Province, and 6.5 C in Seoul, the KMA said, adding the season's lowest temperature has been renewed for three days in a row in the capital.

The KMA attributed the early winter cold to the influx of cold air from the north. Due to high atmospheric pressure, however, the sky will be clear and sunny, pushing up the mercury to around 20 C in the daytime, the agency forecast.

Thus, the daily temperature difference will widen to a maximum of around 20 C, it noted. The morning low will rise to the 30-year average nationwide on Thursday. (Yonhap)