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Bankers say businesses aren't doing enough to prep for climate change

In this image, burned and wrecked cars sit in the foreground of the picture while in the background, a worker tries to fix electricity on a telephone pole.
A worker repairs a utility line in the aftermath of the Camp fire in Paradise, Calif. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

While governments and corporations are starting to protect themselves from the impacts of climate change, Morgan Stanley says private businesses need to do more.

What to watch: The investment bank's strategists are recommending companies strongly consider preparing for a world with more frequent and intense weather events, rising sea levels, changes to agriculture and the spread of infectious disease.

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"We expect the physical risks of climate change to become an increasingly important part of the investment debate for 2019," Morgan Stanley equity strategists Mark Savino, Jessica Alsford and Victoria Irving said in a research note Wednesday.

The big picture: The note also highlights a number of worrying statistics.

  • Climate disasters cost the world $650 billion over 3 years and Americans are bearing the brunt.
  • North America absorbed two-thirds of the global cost of climate disasters over the last 3 years.
  • At $415 billion, the price of the disasters is equal to 0.66% of North America's GDP.
  • Near-term disruptions and long-term structural changes present risks to many sectors of the economy.
Climate change
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