Earthquakes of great magnitude marked the year 1999. Meteorological phenomena also accounted for a significant share of the natural disasters that hit our planet. As a result, more than 70,000 lives were lost. As the century came to a close, the global insurance industry once again found itself burdened by substantial disbursements due to catastrophes.

The international insurance industry faces enormous challenges due to the significant increase in natural disasters in recent years, and it will also employ new instruments to respond to this threat. One of these instruments, Alternative Risk Transfer (ART, see article starting on page 43), already plays a key role in providing additional coverage capacity.

These techniques will continue to be perfected over the coming years, in order to provide the best possible response to the growing occurrence of adverse natural events.

For more information, please contact:
Dr. Gerhard Berz, Thomas Loster, Angelika Wirtz
Münchener Rückversicherungs-Gesellschaft
Central Enterprise Communications Area
Königinstrasse 107
80802 München, Germany
Tel +49 (89) 3891-5291
Fax +49 (89) 3891-5696
www.munichre.com