Large parts of central China remain frozen. Below-freezing temperatures in the region are expected to last till later this week. Heavy snowfall has also led to economic losses. CGTN's Xu Menqi reports from Henan.

XU MENGQI ZHENGZHOU, HENAN Well snow has already melted here in Zhengzhou, the capital of Central China's Henan Province. But the below-freezing temperatures are lingering. Henan's neighboring Hubei Province was among the worst hit by the latest round of snow storms. Official figures show that till 5 pm yesterday more than 1.5 million people were affected, and nearly 2,000 people were relocated. Crops have also felt the full force of the snow as 7 thousand hectares of farmland have been devastated. Hundreds of houses were damaged and the total loss amounts to over 1 billion RMB, that's around 170 million USD. Transport services were also severely disrupted but now that the snowfall has gradually stopped, traffic conditions are improving. The bitter cold, though, won't be going anywhere any time soon. Across central China below-freezing temperatures are forecast to last till the beginning of February and here in Henan Province, we are expecting two more rounds of cold snaps by the end of the week. The good news is, both in Hubei and Henan authorities have strengthened their disaster response, and vowed to make sure that those stricken by the disaster will have a warm and secure place to stay for the upcoming Chinese new year. Xu Mengqi CGTN, Zhengzhou, Henan Province.