China says threat from global warming 'urgent'

China this year faces its greatest threat in a decade from typhoons, floods, droughts and other extreme weather caused by climate change, state media reported on Thursday.

"The situation is urgent," Zheng Guoguang, China's top meteorologist, was quoted as saying by the China Daily newspaper.

"Temperatures in most areas will be higher this year than in previous years, and typhoons are expected to arrive in larger numbers than last year."

Zheng told a Beijing conference that China also could expect flooding due to heavy rainfalls in the centre of the country along the Yangtze River, China's longest river and a regular source of floods.