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China faces record heat far worse than usual this year, as reported by a Chinese outlet. / Xinjing Bao

China, which struggled through record-breaking heat far more intense than usual in late July, appears set to continue facing difficult conditions for a considerable time to come, with August expected to bring even more extreme heat than what has already been endured.

According to reports on the 5th by outlets including Xinjing Bao, citing a senior official at the National Climate Center, temperatures in nearly all regions of China comfortably exceeded 30 degrees in late July. The average temperature was also 1.5 degrees Celsius higher than usual, marking the second-highest on record. Xinjiang, Sichuan, and Chongqing reportedly set all-time highs. It came as little surprise that Xinjiang topped 50 degrees for the first time this year, conditions reminiscent of a sauna.

Things are set to get worse before they get better, with August expected to bring even more severe conditions. The National Climate Center forecasts that even average temperatures in China's northeastern region — traditionally unaffected by heatwaves — will run higher than usual. The number of high-heat days is expected to rise as well, with few regions likely to see daytime temperatures fall below 30 degrees.

Over the next 10 days, Xinjiang, along with most of Inner Mongolia and Gansu Province, are likely to face concentrated waves of extreme heat. In places like Turpan in Xinjiang, for instance, daily highs approaching 45 degrees are expected to become almost routine.

This kind of extreme heat, rarely seen in recent years, has already caused considerable harm. Above all, a number of elderly and other heat-vulnerable people have reportedly died of heatstroke. The heat has also caused significant disruption to production of major crops including rice, corn, and cotton, with further damage likely to accumulate going forward.

Xinjiang, a major cotton-producing region, illustrates the reality well. Local forecasts already suggest this year's cotton output could fall by as much as 5% due to the heat and resulting drought — a clear reason behind expectations that cotton prices will rise in the second half of this year.

Still, there is a reasonable chance the crisis could ease if typhoons No. 13 and No. 14, Dolphin and Gaemi, currently moving north, make landfall in southeastern China and help break the heat. However, the opposite scenario must also be considered: if these typhoons combine with the high-pressure system in a worst-case outcome, there's no guarantee the heatwave won't intensify further. China's heatwave crisis appears to have reached a critical juncture.

                                                                                                           Hong Soon-do