LONDON, March 27 (Reuters) - K-pop stars BTS topped the

UK music charts on Friday, with their comeback album and its

lead single both going straight to No. 1.

BTS, who went on hiatus in 2022 so that members could

complete South Korea's mandatory military service, released

their 10th studio album "Arirang" last week, which their record

label said sold nearly 4 million copies in its first day.

"Arirang" topped the UK albums chart as well as the vinyl

albums charts, the Official Charts Company said in a statement.

The seven-member group, made up of Jimin, Jung Kook, Suga, RM,

V, Jin and J-hope, also topped the UK singles chart for the

first time with the album's lead single "Swim".

"Arirang" also topped albums charts in Australia and Germany

on Friday.

As part of their comeback, BTS performed to tens of

thousands of fans in Seoul last Saturday in their first concert

in more than three years. Authorities shut down the city's

historic downtown, though turnout was far smaller than expected.

The hour-long outdoor concert in Gwanghwamun Square was

streamed live on Netflix ( NFLX ), and drew 18.4 million viewers

worldwide, the streaming platform said. The broadcast ranked

among Netflix's ( NFLX ) weekly Top 10 in 80 countries and topped the

chart in 24 countries, it said.

BTS, who kick off a global tour starting next month, made

their debut in 2013 and helped turn Korean pop music into a

global phenomenon with their upbeat songs and dances, building a

huge and loyal fan base around the world.