MANILA, Philippines: The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said on Thursday that at least one to two tropical cyclones will likely enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) in November. In its weather outlook, Pagasa said that the El Nino phenomenon will continue to persist in the tropical Pacific and is predicted to become strong in the coming months. 'El Nino increases the likelihood of below-normal rainfall

conditions which could bring negative impacts such as dry spells and droughts in some areas of the country,' the state-run weather agency said. As to the forecast rainfall conditions, Pagasa said generally way below to below normal will be likely in most parts of the country in November. 'There is a very high probability for below normal,' it stressed. For December, the state weather bureau said generally below normal in most parts of Luzon while most of Visayas and Mindanao will likely receive near-normal rainfall. 'In this month, there would be a 40 - 45 percent probability for below normal in most parts of the country,' it added. Meanwhile, weather specialist Aldczar Aurelio said the shear line is affecting the eastern sections of Northern Luzon and Central Luzon while the northeast monsoon locally known as 'amihan' is affecting the rest of Northern and Central Luzon. Over the next 24 hours, Metro Manila and the rest of the country will likely have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms due to the localized thunderstorms, Pagasa said.