MANILA - A tropical cyclone outside the Philippine area of responsibility is enhancing the southwest monsoon or habagat, bringing more rains to large swathes of the country on Wednesday, state weather bureau PAGASA said.

"Mayroon pong bagyo, international name po nito is Typhoon Noru, halos nasa gilid ng ating PAR. Hindi na po natin inaasahang papasok ito, [pero] napapalakas po niya ang habagat," PAGASA meteorologist Samuel Duran told DZMM.

(A typhoon with the international name 'Noru' is skirting our PAR. We no longer expect it to enter the country, but it will boost the habagat.)

The habagat, Duran said, will bring cloudy skies with light to moderate rains over Metro Manila, Ilocos, Cordillera, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Bicol, Eastern and Central Visayas, Caraga and Zamboanga peninsula.

The rest of the country meanwhile will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rains, the weather forecaster added.

The bad weather has forced several local governments to cancel classes. Click here for a full list of areas with class suspensions.

Visit the ABS-CBN Weather Center for the latest weather updates.