Aerial footage captures spectacular tidal bore on Qiantang River

A spectacular tidal bore appeared Tuesday morning along the Qiantang River in east China's Zhejiang Province, capturing the attention of crowds of onlookers.

At around 11:10 on Tuesday, onrushing Qiantang tidal bore marched along the Fish Scale Pond, a landmark for tidal bore watching, towards the direction of Yanguan Tourist Resort in Haining City, a renowned destination where tourists gather to admire the magnificent tides every year.

The Qiantang River runs for more than 500 kilometers through Zhejiang, passing through the provincial capital Hangzhou before flowing into the East China Sea via the Hangzhou Bay south of Shanghai.

The river is known for having the world's largest tidal bore, which is locally called the Silver Dragon. The tides usually reach their peak between the 15th to 18th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar, with spectacular scenes wowing countless visitors.

The river roared to life in merely 10 minutes. According to data from the Qiantang tidal bore observation station, when tidal bore rushes towards the Fish Scale Pond, its pressure can reach six to seven tonnes per square meter, showcasing the immense power of the river water.

As the water was pushing ahead, a short one-line tide appeared, followed by some ripple tides.

Affected by Typhoon Bebinca, the tide level in the Qiantang River is relatively high, although it is in the period of medium tide.

Aerial footage captures spectacular tidal bore on Qiantang River

Even under assumptions that the U.S.-Israel war on Iran does not persist past April and that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz gradually resumes, the world will face the pressure of rising oil prices throughout this year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Tuesday.

In its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook released on Tuesday, the EIA raised the forecast of Brent crude oil spot price for 2026 to 96 U.S. dollars per barrel from the previous forecast of 79 U.S. dollars a barrel.

Retail gasoline and diesel prices will continue the rising trend this year, said the outlook.

The outlook maintains a risk premium on crude oil prices throughout the forecast period, as the EIA expects uncertainty around future supply disruptions to keep prices above pre-conflict levels.

"Once flows through the Strait of Hormuz resume, we assume it will take time to resolve the backlog and disruption to oil tanker routes and trade flows and that the potential for future disruptions will remain at risk and create a premium in the oil price," it said.

US Energy Information Administration forecasts rising oil prices throughout 2026