Swiss Re Corporate Solutions says it has introduced an initiative to help Asia-Pacific companies assess physical climate risk impacts on their global portfolios as businesses face increasing scrutiny over potential exposures.

“Companies today are recognising the need to assess their exposure to climate risk for strategic, regulatory, sustainability and brand reputation reasons,” Swiss Re Corporate Solutions Asia Pacific CEO Jonathan Rake said.

Swiss Re says the investment community is increasingly taking sustainability risk management into consideration when providing debt or equity, while there is also rising support for the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures framework.

The company says its Climate Risk Solutions for Corporates allows businesses to better understand exposures such as river and flash floods, bushfire, droughts and storm surges and coastal flooding.

Identified climate “hotspots” can be delved into to produce explicit economic loss costs associated with climate change impacts.

“Climate change is resulting in greater frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and natural catastrophes,” Mr Rake said.

“This has a costly impact on businesses around the world but perhaps more so in Asia where coastal cities are prevalent.”

The economic rise of the region and the expanding footprint of Asian companies is contributing to an imperative to better understand risks at operating locations, the company says.

Swiss Re says a physical climate risk assessment can help companies identify, mitigate and transfer some of the risks to their operations and portfolios.

“This assessment would help companies safeguard their long-term interests and answer to customers, investors, regulators and other stakeholders,” Mr Rake said.

Swiss Re says its framework combines forward-looking climate model data for precipitation and sea-level rise with global flood and storm surge zones to create high-resolution assessments.