Cold air to chill central, eastern China

BEIJING, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Cold air is expected to sweep across central and eastern CHINA, bringing sharp drops in temperature, the national observatory forecast Wednesday.

From Thursday onwards, the temperature will drop by more than 10 degrees Celsius in a vast part of the region, according to the National Meteorological Center (NMC).

A Cold front will also chill southern CHINA on Saturday, with temperatures expected to fall to around 15 degrees Celsius, the NMC said.

Meanwhile, the observatory forecasted moderate and heavy rainfall in many southern areas on Wednesday and Thursday, including Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Anhui and Hunan provinces.

The NMC added that light and moderate snow or sleet would fall on some areas on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau on Wednesday.