China braced for severe drought

Chinese officials are preparing for “a severe, long-lasting drought” in the worst-hit eastern province of Shandong, with the national weather bureau forecasting little if any rain for the region until February 17.

The UN food agency warned that the drought was putting pressure on wheat prices in China.

Average flour prices rose more than 8% in January from the previous two months.

Today, the director of emergency relief at Shandong’s weather bureau said the agency had predicted the future trend of the drought, but he refused to give details.

He said only that officials were preparing for “a severe, long-lasting drought”.