Shanghai lifted its air pollution alert on Sunday as heavy smog that had lasted for days began to disperse away.
According to statistics from China's Ministry of Environmental Protection, 104 citys of 20 provinces in China suffered from severe air pollution on Saturday, with cities in Pearl River Delta, and Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province hit the hardest.
Persistent smog in eastern and central China so far this month has led to a surge in sales of dust masks and air cleaners, China Securities Journal reported on Friday.
Air Quality Index (AQI), which measure PM2.5 particulates, topped 400 on Friday morning in Shanghai, meaning the city was "severely polluted"- the highest level on the air pollution scale - for the second time in a week.
Smog shrouded the skyline of China's financial hub Shanghai as air pollution in the city hit its worst level on Monday.
More polices to encourage greener coal mining should be adopted to cut air pollution as energy consumption in China is expected to exceed targets during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15).
Over 500 illegal barbecue grills in Beijing were destroyed on Tuesday amid the city's efforts to fight air pollution and lingering foggy weather.
Heavy smog has led to closed highways in northeast China on Saturday and Sunday, according to local authorities.
Chinese marine authorities have already fined polluters more than 25 million yuan ($4.07 million) for damaging the marine environment in 2013.
Municipalities and provinces of East and North China started seeing a new round of smog on Friday after days with no wind.
Experts have warned that China's frequent smog may deter overseas Chinese from returning, as the start of the heating season in the north of the country risks worsening the problem.
For those already choking on air in north China, the central heating season could mean more wheezy days in the coming months.
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