China warns of hotter, longer heatwaves

The China Meteorological Administration (CMA) warned that maximum temperatures across the country could rise by 1.7-2.8 degrees Celsius (3-5 Fahrenheit) within 30 years.

Temperatures in most areas across China to be high over the next few months.

China is facing hotter and longer heatwaves and more frequent and unpredictable heavy rain as a result of climate change, the weather bureau warned on Thursday, as the world's second biggest economy braces for another scorching summer.

In its annual climate "Blue Book", the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) warned that maximum temperatures across the country could rise by 1.7-2.8 degrees Celsius (3-5 Fahrenheit) within 30 years, with eastern China and the northwestern region of Xinjiang set to suffer the most.

China describes itself as one of the world's most climate-vulnerable countries, and it is coming under increasing pressure to adapt to rapidly changing weather patterns and sea levels that are rising faster than the global average.

"China is a region that is sensitive to global climate change, a region where the impact will be significant," said Yuan Jiashuang, vice-director of the CMA's National Climate Centre, at a briefing.

She warned that if emissions remained high, extreme heat events expected to occur once every fifty years in China could happen every other year by the end of the century, and rainfall could double and become more unpredictable.