ZURICH (dpa-AFX) - Reinsurer Swiss Re Ltd. (SSREY.PK) Wednesday announced that global insured losses from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters were $35 billion in 2014, down from $44 billion in 2013 and well below the $64 billion-average of the previous 10 years.
According to the latest sigma study, there were 189 natural catastrophe events in 2014, the highest ever on sigma records. Meanwhile, total global economic losses from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters were around $110 billion in 2014, down from $138 billion in 2013. It was also well below the previous 10-year annual average of $200 billion.
Of these total economic losses, $101 billion were due to natural catastrophes, with cyclones in Asia Pacific causing the most damage.
Around 12,700 people lost their lives in all disaster events, down from as many as 27,000 in 2013.
The study showed that a series of severe thunderstorms triggered sizable losses in both the US and Europe last year. Harsh winters in the US and in Japan were another major cause of insurance claims in 2014.
It was another quiet hurricane season in the North Atlantic in 2014, with no major hurricane making US landfall for the ninth year in succession. This was the main reason for the overall below-average insured losses last year.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX