Cold front weakens in Taiwan

TAIPEI -- The cold front that brought the first snowfall to Taiwan last week will continue to gradually weaken through Tuesday, the island's weather department said Monday.

The weather department issued a cold-weather warning Monday morning stating that the temperatures may fall below 10C in some parts of Taiwan from Monday evening to Tuesday morning.

Six monitoring stations across the island recorded the lowest temperature of this winter Monday morning.

However, the weather warmed up quickly during the day and will continue improving on Tuesday. Another cold current from the northeast will reach Taiwan Wednesday and bring rainfall in the northern and eastern parts of the island.

The island had its first snowfall of the year in the mountainous regions on Friday.

Despite the mercury drop last week, the weather department predicted a high possibility of a warm winter this year, which worried local fruit farmers and bee-keepers.

Due to warm weather and less rain than last winter, lychee and longan trees, two major fruits of the island, blossomed poorly in the spring, leading to a bad harvest in the summer. It also affected the output of lychee and longan honey.