The natural disasters caused about $120 billion worth of damage worldwide in the first half of 2023, according to an estimate by Swiss reinsurer Swiss Re released Wednesday.
The figure is slightly lower compared to the first semester of 2022, when the damages were estimated at US$ 123,000 million.
On the other hand, the damages covered by the insurers did register an increase and were US$ 50,000 million in the first half of 2023 against 48,000 million a year earlier.
The costliest catastrophe was the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that devastated Syria and Türkiye in early February, leaving more than 50,000 dead.
Economic losses are estimated at US$34 billion, according to a preliminary calculation by the World Bank.
The costs to insurers, in turn, are estimated at $5.3 billion, according to Swiss Re, which acts as underwriter for insurers.
Insurance bills have also risen due to storms and accompanying weather events such as hail, heavy rain, wind and sudden temperature changes, he said.
These accounted for almost 70% of the damages covered by insurers, and the bill for them amounted to US$35 billion.
Only in USA there were $34 billion in insured losses, and the storms cost insurers $34 billion.
Ten storms caused damage in excess of US$1 billion. The state of Texas was the most affected.
Source: Gestion
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