US forecaster sees 60% chance of La Niña weather in September-November

By Rahul Paswan

(Reuters) - There is a 60% chance of La Niña weather conditions emerging in September-November and they are expected to persist through January-March 2025, a U.S. government forecaster said on Thursday.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

La Niña, a climatic phenomenon characterized by cooler-than-average ocean temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific, is associated with both floods and droughts affecting global agriculture, and higher Caribbean hurricane activity.

In Florida, a state already battered by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago, as many as two million people were ordered to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Milton's arrival. Both storms are expected to have caused billions of dollars in damage.

CONTEXT

The cycle between El Niño, La Niña, and a neutral phase typically lasts two to seven years.

Earlier this week, Japan's weather bureau said that there were no signs of El Niño or La Niña phenomena at this moment, but characteristics of La Niña were approaching.

La Niña usually brings less rain and worsening drought conditions which also has the potential to affect agriculture globally.

KEY QUOTES

"It still looks like a weak La Niña will form over the coming months and should be short lived... that being said other factors continue to favor overall favorable precipitation across the croplands of Australia during their summer regardless of whether La Nina is a major player or not," AccuWeather's lead international forecaster Jason Nicholls said.

(Reporting by Rahul Paswan in Bengaluru; editing by Philippa Fletcher)