July was the world’s hottest month since records began, the European Union's climate observatory confirmed on Tuesday.

Marked by heat waves and fires all around the world, the previous month was 0.33 degrees Celsius higher than the record set in July 2019 when the average temperature was 16.63 degrees, it said.

"The month was 0.72 degrees warmer than the 1991-2020 average for July," it said. 

About 1.2 degrees Celsius of global warming since the late 1800s, driven by the burning of fossil fuels, has made heat waves hotter, longer and more frequent, as well as intensifying other weather extremes like storms and floods.

"Heat waves were experienced in multiple regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including southern Europe. Well-above-average temperatures occurred over several South American countries and around much of Antarctica," the EU climate observatory Copernicus said.

"The global mean for 2023 is the third highest on record, at 0.43 degrees relative to 1991-2020, compared with 0.49 degrees for 2016 and 0.48 degrees for 2020. The gap between 2023 and 2016 is expected to narrow in the coming months, as the latter months of 2016 were relatively cool [...] while the remainder of 2023 is expected to be relatively warm as the current El Niño event develops."

Scientists had warned that July could hit a new record.

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