Beijing, Jan 7 (IANS): The mercury dipped to minus 19.6 degrees Celsius in Beijing on Thursday as a strong cold wave swept the city, marking the coldest morning in the Chinese capital since 1966.

The Nanjiao station, located in Beijing's Daxing District, is a national-level meteorological station founded in 1912, reports Xinhua news agency.

Its data has been used by experts to make historical comparisons.

Early Thursday morning, half of the city's 20 national-level meteorological stations registered their lowest ever early-January temperatures, according to Lei Lei, chief forecaster of the Beijing municipal meteorological station.

The cold wave has gripped Beijing since December 30, 2020, leading to drastic temperature drops and strong winds.

As of Thursday morning, the city's weather authorities had maintained blue alerts for continuous low temperatures and heavy winds, the lowest level in China's four-tier colour-coded warning system.

The cold wave is forecast to continue in Beijing until Friday, with the daily maximum temperature remaining below zero, Lei said, adding that the temperature is expected to climb on Saturday, with the daily maximum temperature rising above 1 degree Celsius.