The air temperature recorded by the observation station in south Beijing reached 31.9 Celsius at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, the highest for the same period over the past four decades.

The temperature in Beijing has kept to rise since late-April. The Central Meteorological Station forecasts that the highest temperature of Friday will again reach 31 Celsius.

"It's so hot already. What should I do when the real summer comes," said a Beijing resident surnamed Ma, who weighs nearly 100 kilograms.

The hot weather on Thursday made him sweat a lot during dinners, he said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 4, 2007)