China experienced its hottest summer on record in 2025, the meteorological authority said, as heatwaves continued to scorch the country’s south.
Temperatures around the world have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change creates ever more erratic weather patterns, with the UK, Japan and South Korea also reporting record heat this summer.
From June to August, “large parts of China experienced intense heat, with the national average temperature reaching 22.31C”, the hottest summer since records began in 1961, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said in a social media post on Monday night.
Temperatures in the capital Beijing rose to nearly 40C in June, and authorities warned in July of heat-related health risks across large swathes of eastern China.
Shanghai authorities said the city had sweltered through 27 days of temperatures hotter than 35C in August, the most since record keeping started.
According to the CMA, stronger high-pressure weather systems contributed to clearer skies and more exposure to heat from the sun across the country this year.
The CMA said that while parts of China would experience a brief reprieve from blistering heat in the middle of the week, cities including Shanghai would see daily highs exceeding 35C again by the end of the week.
Last year’s summer was also a record-breaking one in China, setting the bar at 22.30C.
Globally, 2024 was the world’s hottest year on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
This year isn’t looking to let up on the heat — this week officials in Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom also announced record average summer temperatures.
Global warming, driven largely by the burning of fossil fuels, is not just about rising temperatures, but the knock-on effect of all the extra heat in the atmosphere and seas.
Warmer air can hold more water vapour, and warmer oceans mean greater evaporation, resulting in more intense downpours and storms.
Heavy rain has hit China this summer, with the resulting floods and mudslides killing dozens.
At least 44 people died in the capital Beijing’s rural suburbs after floods submerged homes in July.
In normally arid Inner Mongolia, tourists at a campsite were swept away by a flash flood in August which killed at least nine people.
China is the world’s largest producer of carbon dioxide, a potent greenhouse gas, though it has pledged to bring its emissions to a peak by the end of this decade and to net zero by 2060.
The country has also emerged as a global leader in renewable energy in recent years as it seeks to pivot its massive economy away from highly polluting coal consumption.
