Natural disasters caused $131 billion in global damage during the first half of 2025, making it the second costliest H1 on record since 1980, according to a report released Wednesday by reinsurance giant Munich Re.
The figure significantly exceeds the 30-year average of $79 billion and is surpassed only by 2011, the year of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.
The costliest event so far this year was January’s record-setting California wildfires, which alone accounted for $53 billion in losses.
The deadliest was the March 28 earthquake in Myanmar, which killed approximately 4,500 people.
The United States bore the brunt of the losses, accounting for $92 billion, or 70 percent of the global total, due to a high number of wildfires, storms, and tornadoes. Europe saw $5 billion in damages.
Munich Re attributed the sharp rise to climate change, which is making extreme weather more frequent and intense. Of the $131 billion in damages, $80 billion were insured.
add your comment
Terms of publication : Not to offend the writer, people, sacred things, or attack religions or the divine self, and refrain from racist incitement and insults.