Hong Kong recorded a monthly mean temperature of 20.5 degrees Celsius at the Hong Kong Observatory in February, making it the warmest February in Hong Kong since records of the local temperature began in 1884.

The monthly average temperature was 4.2 degrees higher than the trend level for the three decades starting from 1970, the Hong Kong Observatory said Sunday.

The Observatory even recorded a temperature of 28.3 degrees, the highest daily maximum temperature for February since records began 125 years ago.

The unusually warm February was attributed to a weak northeast monsoon which saw little cold air from the north. In Hong Kong the occurrence of warm southerly winds originating from the ocean was three times more frequent than normal.

The record-breaking temperature reflects to some extent the long-term warming trend, the Observatory said, citing the fact that during the past 50 years the monthly mean February temperature has been rising at about 0.4 degrees per decade.

(Xinhua News Agency March 2, 2009)