Cold waves bring stunning snow, rime scenery across China

Snow and rime have created dreamy winter scenes in multiple regions across China during a recent cold wave, with stunning white mountains and frost-covered vegetation captivating outdoor tourists keen to experience the seasonal spectacle of nature.

In Lushan County, central China's Henan Province, once-green Yaoshan Mountain turned into a silver-white landscape on Monday due to continuous rainfall and dropping temperatures.

Mount Tai in east China's Shandong Province also saw frosty coverage as temperatures plunged below zero. The mountaintop was covered in a white haze, while the peaks and valleys seemed draped in pristine white attire, adding a touch of softness to the mountain's majestic grandeur.

Affected by the cold air, north China's Shanxi Province has recently experienced continuous precipitation and temperature drops, with the maximum temperature in Taiyuan, the provincial capital, falling to 7 degrees Celsius, a drop of about 10 degrees Celsius compared to last week. In response, Taiyuan began providing heating service on Monday, 13 days ahead of schedule.

The sudden temperature drop has also led to dense fog in the province. On Monday morning, heavy fog occurred in parts of Lyuliang City, reducing visibility on expressways to as low as 200 meters. Temporary traffic controls were implemented at six expressway toll stations in Lyuliang.

In Mohe, China's northernmost city, the minimum temperature fell to minus 25 degrees Celsius. The Mohe section of the Heilongjiang River, which forms the border between China and Russia, has entered the floating ice period. By late November, this section is expected to freeze completely.

The recent drop in temperatures has also coated Xitu Mountain, at an elevation of 1,189.6 meters in Jiaohe City, northeast China's Jilin Province, with crystalline ice, dressing pine branches, shrubs, and even rocks in a silvery-white layer.

From Sunday to Monday, record-breaking low temperatures for the second half of this year were recorded in 15 regions across China, among which Shenyang City in northeast China's Liaoning Province and Yinchuan City in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region saw below zero degrees Celsius for the first time this year, according to the National Meteorological Center.

Cold waves bring stunning snow, rime scenery across China

Cold waves bring stunning snow, rime scenery across China

China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao outlined the key priorities of the 32nd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting, which opened on Friday in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province.

In an interview with CGTN ahead of the two-day meeting, Wang said free trade, digital cooperation and green economy are high on the agenda of the meeting.

"The key areas include advancing regional economic integration and the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific, supporting the World Trade Organization (WTO) in strengthening digital cooperation and developing green economy. At present, the international situation is marked by intertwined turbulence and chaos, with intensified geopolitical instability. The rise of unilateralism and protectionism poses serious challenges to the international economic and trade order, disrupting global and Asia-Pacific development. Against this backdrop, all parties have higher expectations for this trade ministers' meeting, hoping that it can build consensus and deliver outcomes," Wang said.

This year marks China's third time hosting the APEC meetings and the 35th anniversary of its membership.

By 2025, China had become the largest trading partner of 13 APEC economies. Trade between China and APEC economies reached 3.7 trillion U.S. dollars, accounting for 57.8 percent of China's total foreign trade.

China has signed 24 free trade agreements or economic and trade arrangements with 31 countries and regions, including 15 APEC economies. In recent years, China has also completed upgrades of free trade agreements with APEC economies such as Singapore and Peru.

The minister said that China has always been a firm supporter and an important contributor to APEC.

"We have actively shared our vast market and development opportunities with all parties. China's door to the world will only open wider and wider. Facing the common challenges, China will continue to fulfill its responsibilities as a major country, further deepen reform, expand high-standard opening-up, and continue to provide new opportunities for the Asia-Pacific region and the world with its new achievements in Chinese modernization," the minister said.

China's Commerce Minister outlines priorities for 32nd APEC trade ministers' meeting