Two to three more typhoons have been forecast to hit China this month, after Typhoon Haitang wreaked havoc in the southeast of the country in mid-July, according to meteorologists on Tuesday.

Five to six tropical cyclones or typhoons are expected to be formed at the northwestern Pacific and South China Sea in August, and at least two could reach coastal areas of southeast China, said Wang Yongguang from the China Meteorological Administration.

The No.9 tropical cyclone Matsa was observed forming on Sunday over the ocean east of the Philippines and was moving towards China at a speed of 20 kilometers per hour.

The first typhoon this year, Haitang, hit the island province of Taiwan on July 18, late for the usual typhoon season of mid-June to mid-October.

(Xinhua News Agency August 3, 2005)