Swiss Re said its fourth quarter result will be hit by $1.3 billion in damages including from Californian wildfires. This brings its full-year damages to nearly $3 billion.
The Zurich-based reinsurer will book $1 billion in expected claims against its fourth-quarter earnings for natural catastrophes including wildfires in California, Florida's Hurricane Michael, and typhoons in Japan, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
Together with another $300 million for man-made catastrophes like an industrial fire in Germany, Swiss Re's so-called claims burden will reach $2.9 billion this year. Losses due to catastrophes this year are the fourth-highest ever, according to the company's calculations.
In November, the deadliest wildfire in California history killed at least 85 people, destroyed 14,000 homes and burned nearly 154,000 acres (62,000 hectares). Swiss Re reports full-year results on February 21.
