Tourists walk down the street during a heat wave in Beijing, July 19, 2023. /CFP
China's average temperature in 2023 was the highest since records began in 1961, said the National Climate Center on Tuesday.
The national average temperature in China last year was 10.7 degrees Celsius, exceeding the record of 10.5 degrees Celsius set in 2021.
The temperature across most of the country was higher by 0.5 to 1 degree Celsius. Across China, 127 national weather stations broke records for daily high temperatures over the course of the year.
Last summer, large swaths of Asia, Europe and North America experienced deadly heat waves, which scientists say are aggravated by rising global temperatures.
2024 is expected to be even hotter. The World Meteorological Organization has warned that the El Niño climate pattern, which typically has the most significant impact on global temperatures after it peaks, would further fuel above-average global temperatures into 2024.
(With input from AFP)