 Similarly , <unk> working with the City University of Hong Kong issued a seasonal projection on April 24 , 2003 , indicating the likelihood of a normal or below normal season with 29 total tropical cyclones , 26 tropical storms , and 16 <unk> . As with the <unk> , the group primarily based their forecast numbers on the prevailing status of the El Niño @-@ Southern <unk> . The City University of Hong Kong revised their <unk> on June 24 , 2003 , indicating a slight increase of total tropical cyclones to 30 . The group was also accurate in their <unk> for the entirety of the Northwest Pacific , though their specialized <unk> for the South China Sea were substantially off . 
