South Korea records hottest April in half a century

A woman walking past air-conditioning units outside a building in Seoul in this file picture as temperatures in April soar past 30 degrees Celsius. - AFP

SEOUL: South Korea experienced its hottest April since comprehensive records began in 1973, the state weather agency said Tuesday (May 7), with average daily temperatures more than 2.5 degrees higher than in previous years.

"The highest average national temperature for April (is) 14.9 deg Celsius (58.8 deg Fahrenheit) in 2024", the Korea Meteorological Administration said, adding it was the highest recorded in April since the national weather observation network was established in 1973.

The previous record was 14.7 deg Celsius, set in April 1998, KMA said.

Average nationwide temperatures in April surpassed the 1991-2020 April average of 12.1 deg Celsius, it added.

The average daily high also reached a record-breaking 21.1 degrees - which is an increase of 2.5 degrees from the average from 1991 to 2020.

April 14 saw especially high temperatures, as the daytime mercury in the greater Seoul region and areas of Gangwon province soared to approximately 30 degrees.

High pressure flows "developed over the Philippine Sea and east of Taiwan, resulting in warm southerly winds flowing into our country along the edge of the high pressure", KMA said in a statement.

Asia is warming faster than the global average, according to the UN's World Meteorological Organization.

In the region, large swathes of South and South-East Asia have recently been sweltering through a heatwave that has topped temperature records from Myanmar to the Philippines, with the El Nino phenomenon driving this year's exceptionally warm weather.

In February, the head of last year's COP28 climate talks said the world needs "trillions" of dollars to spur on the green transition and tackle global warming, warning that political momentum could evaporate without clear action.

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are under pressure to initiate sweeping reforms to align their lending with the Paris deal goal of capping global warming at 1.5 deg Celsius above preindustrial levels. - AFP