Meteorologists say emergence of a strong El Niño climate phenomenon is increasingly likely this year, as ocean temperatures in June reached a record high.
Cities across the region are expected to endure up to 120 days a year above 35°C by 2050, with Thailand's capital seen to be hit the hardest, according to a study by the Asean Centre for Energy.
Progress on reducing PM2.5 air pollution was led by Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Cambodia, while the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam recorded declining air quality, a new report showed.
The region's sustainable finance taxonomy must focus on building consensus around firms moving away from fossil fuels for the classification system to be successful in driving regional decarbonisation.