Lunar New Year vacation will be from Saturday to Wednesday for most Korean citizens, a large portion of whom will meet with family and relatives.

Some Koreans will make trips abroad while there is also an expected influx of inbound tourists to Korea, in particular from China.

Economic policymakers are pinning high hopes on a rapid rebound in sales in some industries, such as tourism, air carriers, cosmetics, hotels and other consumer segments.

Despite the potential positive impact on the economy, the Lunar New Year holiday also presents some potential risks that should be closely monitored by the government.

For one thing, a mosquito-borne epidemic is spreading worldwide. The Zika virus is making quarantine officials at airports nervous due to the expected surge of inbound and outbound tourists.

State-led forecast numbers show that such concerns are justified. About 630,000 South Koreans are likely to go abroad next week. In addition, 157,000 Chinese are expected to come to Korea as the Chinese also have a Lunar New Year holiday.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare, in close coordination with the airport quarantine authority, should make full-fledged efforts to effectively detect suspected infections. Segregation in the initial stages is necessary in order to minimize the possibility of Zika making its way to Korea.

It is also necessary to warn people about the virus so as to prevent pregnant Koreans or those with childbirth plans from visiting South and Central America in the coming months. These groups of people should be advised not to take any overseas trips for a while given the rapid spread of the virus in North America and Europe.

The rising number of babies born with malformed heads in Latin America is raising global concern. In Korea, there have been no suspected infections yet.

Two of the country’s major airlines -- Korean Air and Asiana Airlines -- have promised to refund tickets with no additional charges for pregnant customers if they had initially planned to visit destinations with records of Zika outbreak.

Meanwhile, the Lunar New Year festivities comes amid escalating military tension from the possibility that Pyongyang will launch a long-range missile. North Korea has publicized that it would launch an earth observation satellite on a day between Feb. 8 and 25.

The exact date of this launch remains to be seen, but it is likely to come around the Feb. 16 birthday of Kim Jong-il, the incumbent ruler Kim Jong-un’s late father and longtime despotic leader of the North, in light of the pattern of past events.

In addition, the North’s provocation cannot be ruled out. The Defense Ministry and the military should establish an omnidirectional defense readiness posture in the coming days.