World sees economic loss of US$ 65 bil. from natural disasters in H1 2022

Natural disasters like floods and storms are happening more frequently around the world.
In just the first half of this year, according to a study, they've resulted in some 65 billion U.S. dollars in economic losses worldwide.
Choi Min-jung reports.
Every year, natural disasters like floods, earthquakes and storms lead to significant economic losses.

According to global reinsurance firm Munich Re,... natural disasters in the first half of 2022 caused overall losses of 65 billion U.S dollars worldwide.
A chief climate scientist at Munich Re says that it is becoming "extremely clear that the influence of climate change is becoming ever more evident".

The United States was the country with the highest weather-related economic losses.
Losses in the U.S. totaled 28 billion dollars in the first six months of 2022,... accounting for almost half of the global economic damage.
A series of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes were the main causes.

The Asia-Pacific region also saw 22 billion dollars of economic damage, a figure higher than usual.
This was mostly caused by extreme rainfall and floods in Australia,.. as well as a powerful earthquake that struck Japan in March.

In Europe, extreme heat and wildfires are believed to have had a big impact,... though exact figures were not revealed.
The International Labor Organization has also warned that work-related heat stress is projected to reduce global total working hours by 2.2 percent,... and global GDP by 24-hundred billion dollars by 2030.

South Korea has also suffered from extreme weather events.
Prices of agricultural products jumped by over 8 percent on-year in July,... as production volume declined due to the earlier-than-expected heatwave and rainfall in early June.

The Hyundai Research Institute says it is highly likely that there will be even bigger price hikes if there's more extreme weather in the coming years.
Experts say climate change poses one of the biggest risks to the global economy, and that stronger protection is needed as the majority of people remain uninsured against natural disasters.
Choi Min-jung, Arirang News.