China records hottest month in recent history

BEIJING (Reuters) – China had its hottest month ever recorded in modern history in July, Chinese state media reported, reflecting the record hot weather seen around the world last month.

Temperatures averaged 23.21 degrees Celsius (73.78 degrees Fahrenheit) last month, surpassing 23.17 degrees Celsius in July 2017, China’s national television broadcaster reported on Thursday – the highest monthly average since that the country began compiling comprehensive data in 1961.

The world recorded its hottest day on record on July 22, with the global average surface air temperature reaching 17.15ºC.

What makes this year’s record heat unusual is that – unlike in 2023 and 2016 – the El Niño weather pattern, which amplifies global temperatures due to warmer-than-usual waters in the Eastern Pacific, ended in April, but temperatures have not decreased.

This points to the greater influence of climate change than ever on rising global temperatures, some scientists say.

In July, all provinces in China had average temperatures higher than in the same month in previous years. Temperatures in Guizhou and Yunnan provinces were the highest, followed by Hunan, Jiangxi and Zhejiang, according to China Central Television (CCTV).

On August 1, temperatures remained high in the Yangtze River Delta, with Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou and other provincial capitals forecast to experience high temperatures over the next seven days.

Hangzhou could sizzle in record temperatures exceeding 40C, according to CCTV.

Global warming has made weather events in China more intense and unpredictable. The world’s second-largest economy has recorded some of the most intense rains in recent history, causing floods and landslides.

China recorded 25 significant floods on major rivers in this year’s flood season, more than in any other year since 1998, when record keeping began, the Ministry of Water Resources said on Thursday.

(Reporting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)