Cold front hits Shanghai but warmer days ahead

Good news for Shanghai residents: It is forecast to turn warmer starting tomorrow, according to forecasters.

A cold front arrived in Shanghai on Tuesday night, bringing the mercury down and prompting blue cold-wave alerts in the suburban districts of Songjiang, Minhang, Jinshan, and Fengxian.

The city was enveloped in a light haze Wednesday morning, but air quality should improve in the afternoon.

On Wednesday, temperatures will hover between 3 and 8 degrees Celsius during the day but drop further in the evening.

The low is expected to be about 1 degree in downtown Thursday morning, while temperatures on the outskirts may be as low as -5 to -3 degrees. However, the temperature is expected to top 10 degrees during the day.

The upward trend will continue afterward, with the high likely to exceed 17 degrees on Sunday.

Temperatures in Shanghai may fall early next week due to the diffusion of cold air, but they are forecast to rise again to about 17 degrees shortly after.

Forecasters predicted that following the temporary influence of the cold air, temperatures will climb across much of the country, with highs topping 20 degrees in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Such temperature swings are unusual during the normally chilly "Sanjiu" season – the third "nine days" after the Winter Solstice, when Shanghai's peak temperature should be about 10 degrees.