MANILA — The amihan season has begun, signaling the onset of colder weather associated with the Christmas season, state weather bureau PAGASA said Friday.

The cold and dry winds have started to lower temperatures in Luzon's northern tip over the past several days as a high pressure system over Siberia strengthened, indicating the start of the amihan, PAGASA said in a statement.

The agency has yet to predict when the amihan will reach Metro Manila, PAGASA weather forecaster Chris Perez told ABS-CBN News.

The amihan, which typically lasts until mid-February and sometimes until early March, may bring light rains. It can also weaken storms heading north because these use warm and moist air as fuel, said Perez.

The northernmost provinces of Batanes, Ilocos Norte, Apayao and Cagayan on Thursday will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated light rains due to the northeasterly windflow, said PAGASA.

Localized thunderstorms meanwhile may dampen Metro Manila and the rest of the country, the agency said.