Molave, the 6th tropical storm this year, has gained momentum to become a typhoon early on Saturday morning and is close to southeastern China, local meteorological authorities said.

By 5:00 AM, Molave was located at 21.3 degrees north and 118.7 degrees east, some 310 kilometers away from Zhao'an county in southeastern China's Fujian Province, said the provincial weather bureau.

Packing winds of 33 meters per second (119 kilometers an hour), the typhoon is churning northwestward to somewhere between Guangdong's central part and Fujian's south at a speed of 25 kilometers per hour.

The Fujian provincial weather bureau forecast that the typhoon would make landfall between Saturday night to Sunday morning.

It will unleash gales and torrential rains in southeastern China, especially the coastal areas.

The weather bureau warned vessels in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Straits to be alert and return to harbor timely.

(Xinhua News Agency July 18, 2009)