Munich Re Climate Summit at Shanghai EXPO highlights risks and opportunities of climate change

FinChannel.com, the Financial: In China, an estimated 200 million people are impacted by natural catastrophes every year. The rising number of severe weather-related natural catastrophes, also due to climate change, is increasing losses and impacting economic development.

Innovative insurance solutions can help those affected to mitigate the impact of climate change and to adapt to the changing environment. Munich Re sees opportunities for insurance companies which take the lead in providing new forms of coverage, from renewable energy production to carbon trading. The reinsurer is a preferred partner of insurance companies, assisting them with know-how and reinsurance capacity to support the development of new technologies which are complex and often involve high insured values.

"At a two-day summit at the Shanghai EXPO, Munich Re is highlighting the risks of climate change and the business opportunities from adaptation to and mitigation of the new risk environment. Climate change and its consequences are a strategic issue for the reinsurer, as they directly impact its core business. Firstly, the growing number of severe natural catastrophes is giving rise to greater loss potential. Secondly, combating climate change is opening up new business segments, creating opportunities for the insurance industry, but also for countries that are leaders in innovation, which certainly include China," Munich Re informs.

“With innovative insurance products and new coverage concepts, we can support not only adaptation measures but also the development of climate protection technologies,” said Munich Re CEO Nikolaus von Bomhard at the opening of the Group's Climate Summit. “Investors in and operators of new technologies benefit from the safety net provided by Munich Re ’s risk-transfer solutions.”…

Snarled traffic in the 2008 Chinese winter storms in Hefei, Anhui Province, China, shot by 张悦洋 (Zhang Yueyang), Permission and ownership granted to -- 李博杰 , Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license