Global economy faces risks from climate change 기후변화 리스크

And, this wild weather isn't limited to Northeast Asia. From floods to droughts to scorching heat to freezing temperatures, the entire world has been experiencing a range of severe regional weather extremes in recent years. Behind these distinct events, experts say. is climate change. and it's raising some serious questions. For some answers, we are now joined live by our Hwang Ji-hye at Arirang's news center. Ji-hye, the weather these days has been all over the place. Conn-young, let me tell you. You're not the only who's frustrated about the weather. Temperatures in some parts of Korea have been getting close to the 40-degree Celsius mark,. as our Kim Hyun-bin reported earlier. and hundreds of people have already been hospitalized for heatstroke. "It's so humid these days that I get easily irritated. The weather is really going back and forth." "The weather is really weird these days. The monsoon rain seems like it'll never end, and it doesn't even feel like monsoon rain when it starts to pour and stops abruptly." The Korea Meteorological Administration says. that a subtropical high-pressure system is causing the scorching heat here in Korea. as well as in neighboring countries like China and Japan. As the high pressure expands,. it's concentrating the heat in Korea's southern regions, in central and southern China. and on Japan's Kyushu island. "The subtropical high-pressure system during the summer season raises the air temperature to quite a high level -- creating a condition with high energy. This can turn into different kinds of extreme weather, like torrential rain or sweltering heat." Ji-hye, as we mentioned at the top of our segment, the severe weather isn't just confined to Northeast Asia. It's happening globally,. prompting concerns of climate change. Exactly. Since the mid-2000s,. the frequency of record-breaking weather conditions like extreme heat waves and severe droughts have risen sharply,. leading to a loss of lives and damage to property. This is a burden to government coffers. as recovery from major natural disasters is hurting the government's fiscal soundness. For example,. the amount of money the Korean government has doled out for natural disaster coverage. surged to 2 trillion won,. or roughly 1-point-8 billion U.S. dollars last year from 130 million dollars in 2008. The British government, recognizing the threats coming from climate change in 2008, established the Department of Energy and Climate Change. And other governments have expressed concerns over the outbreak of new types of diseases. as well as rising inflationary pressure caused by unstable prices of agricultural products. What about business? Isn't climate change a threat for companies' production and investment activities? Yes. Climate change raises the level of uncertainty for businesses,. which in turn results in an increase in costs for production and sales. Many global companies that have in the past largely ignored climate change are now recognizing it as a major threat,. and establishing countermeasures. Industrial chemical giant, DuPont, for example,. has formed a unit exclusively to handle the effects of climate change. and the CEO of the company also occupies the chief position of the department. What's interesting. is how Korean companies are reacting to climate change. Most don't view the matter a risk or an opportunity. "American and Japanese companies consider climate change to be a major threat for their bottom lines and try to control it or to utilize it as an opportunity. Climate change for them is a major variable for management. Korean companies, on the other hand, seem to be very passive in their reaction to climate change." What are some new fields that will get a boost because of climate change? The Samsung Economic Research Institute says. five major climate-related businesses have great potential to prosper. as the threats from climate change grow. They include climate information services. that provide weather forecasting for industrial activities,. natural disaster prevention equipment businesses. that produce climate observation equipment,. financial risk management businesses that provide insurance. and derivatives products related to climate and disease management. and water processing companies that will work to counteract water shortages. So the changes we're experiencing, and the heat we're enduring right now, serve as opportunities for some companies. Bad news for Mother Nature. good news for smart businesses. Sure. That was Hwang Ji-hye, reporting live from the news center on how businesses are responding to the changing weather conditions worldwide.