China looks to insurance to stem mounting disaster loss

When heavy rains triggered floods in China last year, washing away homes, causing landslides and flooding farmland, the damage resulted in overall losses of $20 billion — making it the world’s second-costliest disaster in 2016.

Yet with only 2 percent of that insured, according to German reinsurer Munich Re, many communities and businesses in central and southern China are still struggling to rebuild without the help of an insurance payout.

In contrast, when Typhoon Haima made landfall last October in Guangdong, it triggered a payout within days, thanks to a new pilot insurance scheme to cover the province against losses of up to $350 million from tropical…

Japan steelmakers scramble for coking coal to make up Debbie losses

Japanese steelmakers have bought coking coal from the United States, Canada and China to replace supply lost after a cyclone closed rail links in Australia, their biggest supplier, industry and trader sources said.

Still, the Japanese buyers are paying nearly double the $150 a tonnes price that they were discussing with sellers for second-quarter supply before the supply disruption. The supply talks are now on hold and prices will likely stay high until full volumes start flowing again.

In 2016, Japan bought about 71 percent of the 59.9 million tonnes of coking coal it consumed from Australia…