El Nino conditions are present and expected to strengthen into the northern hemisphere winter of 2026–27, the US Climate Prediction Center says.
The US government forecaster added that El Nino conditions developed over the past month.
The El Nino is a phenomenon that occurs naturally, when weakening trade winds cause warmer ocean waters to build up in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific.
This typically leads to higher global temperatures and altered weather patterns, bringing drought to some regions and heavy rainfall to others.
"El Nino is likely to have a negative impact on crop yields in Southeast Asia and India, where El Nino is typically associated with below-normal rainfall," said Kyle Tapley, enterprise sales executive at Vaisala Xweather's WeatherDesk.
The monsoon delivers nearly 70 per cent of India's rainfall and is vital for the agricultural sector, which accounts for about 18 per cent of the nearly $US4 trillion ($A5.7 trillion) economy.
Below-normal rainfall could mean smaller harvests of crops such as rice, cotton and soybeans while also weighing on winter crops.
Meanwhile, Indonesian rice farmers are racing to get ahead of the usual planting schedule as they battle the threat of a lengthy dry spell this year.
Malaysia's economic minister warned that El Nino could cause crop yields to fall by an average of between 8 per cent and 10 per cent this year.
"El Nino typically leads to a less-active US hurricane season and we expect a below-normal Atlantic hurricane season this year. However, it is important to remember that a strong hurricane is still possible even in a less-active hurricane season," Tapley said.
The US hurricane season began on June 1 and runs through November 30.
