HAIKOU - Tropical Storm Haitang was upgraded from a tropical depression on Sunday morning while it hung close to South China's Hainan province, said a weather forecast released by the provincial meteorological bureau.

At about 8 am Sunday morning, tropical storm Haitang, the 18th in 2011, was ungraded from a tropical depression. It was about 490 km to the southeast of Sanya city of Hainan.

It is expected that Tropical Storm Haitang will linger about at the same spot for a day before moving westward with the same or stronger strength.

Gales generated by the tropical storm are expected to lash most of the South China Sea, the Beibu Gulf and the Qiongzhou Strait.

Most part of Hainan and the southern part of the nearby Guangdong province are expected to receive heavy rains over the coming few days.