The forecast through December indicates that water surpluses in China will remain widespread in the Yellow and Yangtze River Watersheds and in Northeast China, with exceptional anomalies shrinking in the river basins but increasing in the Northeast. Deficits are forecast in Japan.
Australia & New Zealand: Water deficits to persist in North Island NZ
Australia & New Zealand: Water deficits to downgrade but persist in Tasmania
Exceptional water deficits that have dominated southern Australia are expected to disappear, but deficits are forecast for northern Australia, the southwest, the southeast, and Tasmania. These deficits may be intense in Tasmania and in pockets of other aforementioned areas. Moderate deficits are expected along the Darling, Lachlan, and Macquarie Rivers in New South Wales. Surpluses will shrink but persist in the Mackenzie River region of Queensland and in southwest Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Australia & New Zealand: Water deficits ahead for South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales
The forecast through March indicates widespread and exceptional water deficits in South Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales. Deficits of varying severity are forecast for Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, Northern Territory’s Top End, central Tasmania, and North Island, New Zealand. Moderate surpluses are expected in an arc across the northern part of the country from the Kimberly Plateau through northeastern Queensland to the coast. The forecast past March is less eventful, with deficits emerging across Northern Territory, scattered through Victoria and New South Wales, and in Tasmania, and New Zealand.
Australia & New Zealand: Water deficits persist in the North, Tasmania, & North Island
Water deficits are forecast to linger for the next six months across parts of northern Australia – particularly the northernmost regions of the Northern Territory and the southern shore of the Gulf of Carpentaria – and also in the southwest tip of Western Australia; Tasmania; and North Island, New Zealand. Moderate surpluses are forecast in August and September along the Macquarie and Lachlan Rivers in New South Wales. Current surpluses farther north in eastern Queensland are expected to persist, and surpluses are forecast to emerge along the Barcoo River in November.