Updated: Tuesday, 04 December 2012 09:40 | By Agence France-Presse

New iPhone heads to South Korea, 50 more countries

Apple announced that the latest version of the iPhone will be released in South Korea on Friday and in more than 50 other countries including Russia, Brazil, and Taiwan later in the month.

The news indicated that the California-based company was on track to make the iPhone 5 available in 100 countries by the end of the year despite being hard pressed to meet demand where the handsets are being sold.

Apple last week unveiled plans to make its newest gadgets including the iPad mini and iPhone 5 available this month in China, the country where many Apple products are manufactured.

The iPad mini and fourth generation iPad will be sold in China starting December 7, and the iPhone 5 will be available December 14, Apple said in a statement.

The iPhone 5 was launched in September in the United States and several other countries, selling more than five million in the first weekend.