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2020 was one of three warmest years on record: World Meteorological Organisation
The WMO pointed to sustained heat and wildfires in Siberia, diminishing Arctic sea ice and record-breaking hurricanes in the Atlantic as being among the climate events that most stood out in 2020.
The UN weather agency said that temperature is just one climate change indicator. Greenhouse gas concentrations, ocean heat content, global mean sea level, sea ice extent and extreme events are also factors.
Surging shipping rates pose new headwind for the global economy
Containers that once would have cost $2,000 to send across the Pacific are now being quoted as high as $13,000 for service before Chinese New Year in mid-February,
WHO team arrives in Wuhan to search for the origins of the coronavirus pandemic
Scientists suspect the virus that has killed 1.9 million people since late 2019 jumped to humans from bats or other animals, most likely in China’s southwest. The ruling Communist Party, stung by complaints it allowed the disease to spread, says the virus came from abroad, possibly on imported seafood, but scientists reject that.
Vaccines and masks: Joe Biden plan aims to break pandemic cycle
A more disciplined focus on vaccination is the new and widely anticipated game-changing element, but that’s far from the whole story. Biden is asking Americans to override their sense of pandemic fatigue and recommit to wearing masks, practicing social distancing, and avoiding indoor gatherings, particularly larger ones. That’s still the surest way to break the Covid-19 wave, with more than 4,400 deaths reported just on Tuesday.
35 Killed, hundreds injured after strong Quake in Indonesia’s Sulawesi
The powerful quake struck 6 km (3.73 miles) northeast of the town of Majene, at the relatively shallow depth of 10 km, just before 1.30 a.m., sending thousands of frightened residents out of their homes and fleeing for higher ground.
The earthquake and aftershocks caused three landslides, cut electricity, damaged bridges to regional hubs such as the city of Makassar, and damaged more than 60 homes, two hotels and the provincial governor’s office, where at least two people were buried under rubble, authorities said.
Initial information from the national disaster mitigation agency showed that 637 people had been injured in Majene, and two dozen in Mamuju.
No tsunami warning was issued but the head of Indonesia’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), Dwikorita Karnawati, told a news conference that aftershocks could follow, with a possibility that another powerful quake could trigger a tsunami.
UK Supreme Court hands businesses victory in COVID-19 insurance ruling
Six of the world’s largest commercial insurers — Hiscox, RSA, QBE, Argenta, Arch and MS Amlin — said many business interruption policies did not cover widespread disruption after Britain’s first national lockdown last March.
But senior judges said payouts should be triggered after scrutinising 14 non-damage insurance policy clauses — which cover disease, denial of access to business premises and hybrid clauses — in a resounding victory for policyholders and the regulator.
Reeling from coronavirus, Asia’s poultry farmers battle bird flu outbreak
Bird flu cannot infect people through poultry consumption, and the H5N8 virus is not known to have ever infected humans, but consumers are still fearful, said Uddhav Ahire, chairman of Anand Agro Group, a poultry company based in the western city of Nashik.
Market conditions harden further at January 2021 Renewals
Capital injections of over USD20 billion and a recovery in financial markets helped to maintain the reinsurance capacity at the levels of early 2020, proving the resilience of the market, Fitch.
The question now is how sustainable the price increases are. In the run-up to the renewals, reinsurers were optimistic of prolonged market hardening, but some are now less sure they are right:S&P
SCOR partners with CyberCube for developing a cyber risk management tool
Jean-Paul Conoscente, CEO of SCOR P&C, commented,“In line with our Quantum Leap strategic plan, under which we are accelerating our use of new technologies, this partnership with CyberCube is a perfect example of how SCOR leverages data management and analysis capabilities to build its knowledge and deliver optimal service to clients.This integrated Cyber platform is a major development that will enable us to further deepen and broaden our management of this key risk in the future.”
Microsoft, Cigna form coalition for digital records of COVID-19 vaccination
The project, called Vaccination Credential Initiative, aims to help people get encrypted digital copies of their immunization records stored in a digital wallet of their choice, the companies said in a statement on Thursday.