Australia has raised its travel advice for South Korea and Japan as the coronavirus spreads from China to its neighbours, fuelling concerns the flu-like disease will become a global pandemic.

Chief medical officer Brendan Murphy said Australia did not want "to rule out anything" in dealing with the crisis, including a potential travel ban on South Korea, but noted Seoul had "very strong measures in place to isolate the centre of that outbreak".

A man wears a mask to prevent the coronavirus in the Myungdong shopping district in Seoul. Credit:Getty

Qantas Airways does not fly to South Korea but runs a code-share service with Asiana Airlines. It would be up to the Australian government to impose travel restrictions on foreign airlines.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) on Monday upgraded the travel advice for Australians travelling to South Korea, urging them to "exercise a high degree of caution due to the heightened risk of sustained local transmission of coronavirus".