Commuters in warm clothes come out of HKU subway station, in Central and Western district, Hong Kong, on Dec 22, 2023, with the morning temperature falling to 8 degrees Celsius. (SHAMIM ASHRAF / CHINA DAILY)

The temperatures have dropped to around 5 degrees Celsius in some areas of Hong Kong on winter solstice, the shortest day of the year.

At 4:20 pm on Friday, Ngong Ping in western Lantau Island registered 5.2 degrees Celsius, while Tai Mo Shan – the highest peak in the city – saw a temperature of 2.6 degrees Celsius, according to the Hong Kong Observatory.

The forecaster said the city will be persistently cold on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Temperatures will rise gradually midweek next week.

China Daily's Calvin Ng took the photos.

A dog wearing a jacket and a woman sit in a street, in Tseung Kwan O, Hong Kong, Dec 22, 2023. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)