The trough of tropical storm Bebinca is starting to affect the eastern portion of the country Wednesday, ahead of its expected entry into the Philippine area of responsibility on Friday, weather bureau PAGASA said. 

As of 3 a.m., the center of the eye of Tropical Storm Bebinca was located 2,070 kilometers east of Eastern Visayas. Packing 75 kph winds and gusts of up to 90 kph, the storm is moving west-northwest at 25 kph.

Eastern Visayas, Caraga, Sorsogon, and Masbate will experience cloudy skies with scattered rains and thunderstorms while Cagayan Valley, Aurora, Quezon, and the rest of Bicol Region will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms Wednesday because of the storm. 

Metro Manila and the rest of the country will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers or thunderstorms because of the southwest monsoon.

PAGASA earlier said Bebinca is forecast to intensify into a severe tropical storm by Friday morning, adding that it may intensify even further into a typhoon. 

Bebinca is expected to enter PAR by Friday evening and will be named Ferdie.

Current track scenario shows Bebinca will not directly affect any part of the country but is expected to enhance the southwest monsoon, which will bring occasional rains over Visayas and Palawan as well as scattered rainshowers and thunderstorms over Bicol, MIMAROPA and Mindanao starting Thursday.

Bebinca is forecast to exit PAR by Saturday.