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The 2023 Pacific typhoon season is an ongoing event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation, in which tropical cyclones form in the western Pacific Ocean. The season runs throughout 2023, though most tropical cyclones typically develop between May and October. The season’s first named storm, Sanvu, developed on April 21. The following month, Mawar, intensified into the first typhoon of the season on May 21, becoming one of the strongest Northern Hemisphere tropical cyclones on record in May, and the second-strongest early-season tropical cyclone, behind only Surigae in April 2021.[1]

 

China – Last Friday non -stop heavy rains lashed parts of southwest China on Friday, triggering floods in cities, engulfing roads and partially submerging buildings. A particularly harsh first bout of summer rains known locally as “dragon boat water” saw the city of Beihai in Guangxi log 453 millimetres on Thursday. That was a regional daily record for June, according to the China Meteorological Administration. North China can expect up to 2 weeks of rainfall over the month ahead.

 

Manila, Philippines — State weather bureau PAGASA declared Friday the start of the rainy season in the Philippines. In a statement, PAGASA said the recent occurrence of scattered thunderstorms, the passage of cyclone Betty (Mawar) and the southwest monsoon (Habagat) brought widespread rain to the western sections of Luzon and Visayas, signifying the start of the rainy season in the country, especially in areas with Type I climate. Areas with Type I climate have a distinct dry and wet season: wet from June to November and dry for the rest of the year.

 

For the greater region, Southwest Monsoon conditions are expected to be established from June 2023 and persist throughout the June to August (JJA) 2023 period. In the northern ASEAN region, the Southwest Monsoon is associated with the traditional rainy season that often brings widespread and persistent shower activities. Over the southern ASEAN region, the Southwest Monsoon season is characterised by drier conditions compared to other times of the year, as the monsoon rain band typically lies further north from the Equator. Overall, the prevailing low-level winds in the ASEAN region blow mainly from the southeast or southwest during this period.

For the June to August (JJA) 2023 period, an increased chance of below-normal rainfall is predicted for much of the southern ASEAN region, with highest likelihood over the southern Maritime Continent. ENSO neutral conditions are present but are likely to transition into El-Niño in the next few months. A positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) is predicted to develop during June – August 2023. Warmer-than-normal temperature is predicted for much of the ASEAN region.

India and Pakistan – Cyclone Biparjoy Packs Strong Winds as It Nears Pakistan and India. Tens of thousands of residents along both countries’ southern coasts were evacuated before the cyclone’s expected landfall on Thursday. Flooding remained a threat in some areas. Cyclone Biparjoy was crawling along the Arabian Sea with powerful winds and appeared to be on a path toward the border of Pakistan and India, where the authorities have ordered tens of thousands of residents to evacuate before the storm makes landfall on Thursday. The cyclone, whose name means “disaster” in Bengali, had been the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane on Wednesday but it weakened to a strong tropical storm, with sustained winds of 69 miles per hour and gusts up to 86 m.p.h. on Thursday morning in Pakistan and India, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Centre. It had earlier been moving with hurricane-force winds. Across the broader region, forecasters say the cyclone will generate heavy rain and powerful tropical-storm-force winds of over 39 m.p.h. extending to at least 80 miles from the storm’s centre, from the state of Gujarat in western India to the port city of Karachi, Pakistan. Tide levels are forecast to rise six to 10 feet above normal in areas near and just south of the cyclone’s centre.

Shippers should be vigilant with waterproof packaging during this shipping window as cargo is exposed to weather conditions while loading and unloading vessels and aircraft.

 

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