Billions at stake from pandemics and natural disasters: study

Singapore

HUNDREDS of billions of dollars in economic output from Southeast Asia's largest cities could be at risk from threats such as a human pandemic or a market crash in this decade, suggests a new global study.

The study, commissioned by insurer Lloyd's and carried out by the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School, analysed GDP at risk in 301 cities around the world. It's known as the Lloyd's City Risk Index.

The study looked at Southeast Asia's 15 largest cities, such as Singapore, and estimated that some US$300 billion would be at risk, even as Lloyd's stressed that these findings are not predictive or actual forecasts. This number reflects 17.7 per cent of the projected average annual GDP of US$1.69 trillion generated by those …