North, central China bake in record May heat

Swathes of northern and central China sweltered this week under record May heat, state media said on May 20, with temperatures rising well above 40 deg C in several major cities.

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BEIJING - Swathes of northern and central China sweltered this week under record May heat, state media said on May 20, with temperatures rising well above 40 deg C in several major cities.

China has endured spates of extreme weather events, from soaring temperatures to drought, downpours and floods, for several summers running.

The country is the world's largest greenhouse gas emitter, but also a renewable energy powerhouse seeking to cut carbon dioxide emissions to net zero by 2060.

State broadcaster CCTV reported on May 20 that multiple cities logged all-time May highs this week: They included Zhengzhou, a metropolis of 13 million people in central Henan province, which saw a high of 41 deg C on May 19, CCTV said. In Linzhou, temperatures rose to 43.2 deg C, while Shahe in northern Hebei province logged 42.9 deg C, the national weather office said in a social media post on May 19.