Munich Re, hurricane season will be violent
The reinsurer in a report estimated natural catastrophe losses in the first half of the year at $120 billion
1' min read
1' min read
Munich Re raises the alarm: the hurricane season in the Atlantic is likely to be particularly violent and the global rise in temperatures does not seem to be stopping.
The reinsurer highlighted this in an updated report on catastrophe events in the first half of 2024. The report showed that total losses from natural disasters, including those not covered by insurance, were $120 billion in the first half of the year, down from $140 billion in the previous year but above 10-year and 30-year trends.
But what is most worrying are the coming months. For the company, high water temperatures due to climate change are contributing to the formation of hurricanes, and the El Nino weather pattern this year will not help mitigate the storms.
"Indicators continue to portend a very serious hurricane season," explained Munich Re, which published the report just as the season is entering its prime.
Tobias Grimm, the group's scientist to Reuters, added: 'Climate change is happening. This is a fact. Global temperatures are 1.5 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial levels' and this upward trend, he concluded, 'shows no signs of stopping'.
