China's National Meteorological Center (NMC) issued on Sunday a yellow alert -- the third-highest in a three-tier warning system, warning of high temperatures that in some regions may exceed 40 degrees Celsius.
An intense heatwave is in the forecast on Sunday, with temperatures expected to reach record-breaking levels in parts of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, central China's Hubei Province, and southwest China's Sichuan Province and Chongqing Municipality.
"According to our analysis based on the latest data, the large-scale high-temperature weather in Sichuan will last until August 6, and the highest temperature in most parts of the region will be 36 to 39 degrees Celsius, of which some parts in the central and eastern regions can reach 40 to 42 degrees Celsius, and the temperature in some area may exceed 42 degrees Celsius, which may reach or exceed the historical maximum temperature in the same period for the basin. Among them, the high-temperature process from August 3 to 5 will develop to its strongest stage," said Xiao Hongru, Chief Forecaster of the Sichuan Meteorological Observatory.
The forecast also indicates that high-temperature weather in the southern part of Shaanxi, the eastern part of Sichuan, Chongqing, Hubei, northern part of Hunan, northern part of Jiangxi, the northern part of Fujian, and Hainan will persist for seven to eight days.
China issues fresh alert for heatwave amid persisting scorching weather
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's official visit to China signals a policy shift towards building a more pragmatic relationship between the two countries, according to a Canadian researcher.
Carney arrived in Beijing on Wednesday to begin an official visit to China through Saturday, which marks the first trip by a Canadian Prime Minister to the country in eight years.
Robert Hanlon, director and principal investigator of Canada and the Asia Pacific Policy Project (CAPPP) at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, told the China Global Television Network (CGTN) that Carney's visit indicates Canada is recalibrating its strategic perception of China, which could cement the foundation for the country's economic diversification efforts and boost the development of bilateral cooperation.
"I think it's a clear message that he has moved Canada's strategy to a much more pragmatic, interest-based, -focused relationship with our trading partners, moving away from values-based narratives that we might have heard on previous governments. Canada has spoken about moving from what the Prime Minister's Office is calling "from reliance to resilience", and that means diversifying our economies and our trade everywhere in the world. And so China being our second largest trading partner, it makes perfect sense for our PM to head to Beijing," he said.
The scholar also noted the huge cooperation potential between the two sides in economic and trade fields, citing Canada's efforts to step up shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and the planned construction of an oil pipeline in Alberta which aims to increase export access to Asian markets. "Canada and China both share tremendous economic opportunities together and so finding ways to enhance our exports. Canada specifically looking to build out its LNG and oil, kind of export market. We know Canada is a major producer of critical minerals and China is a buyer. And so there's a lot of synergy between that kind of those kind of markets," he said.
Canadian PM's visit to China paves way for more pragmatic trade ties: scholar
