Nine people were missing on Sunday after a fishing boat capsized off the southwest coast of South Korea, authorities said, with the country's president urging stepped-up search and rescue efforts.

The fishing boat overturned just before midnight on Saturday, with three crew members picked up by a passing ship, the coast guard said.

Coast guard ships were scouring the area for nine others, and President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered other naval and civil resources to help, his office said in a statement.

In late January, at least eight people were reported dead after a cargo ship sank between South Korea and Japan, Chinese officials said. (Reuters)