Most of the losses were due to storms in the United States and Japan caused by high sea-surface temperatures.

It said more than 300,000 people died in 330 natural and man-made catastrophes in 2004, with the tsunami in the Indian Ocean in late December alone leaving 280,000 dead or missing.

Swiss Re said total losses directly attributable to those catastrophes reached 123 billion dollars, of which 49 billion was covered by property insurance.

For property insurers, 2004 was a record year in terms of claims, mainly due to windstorms: hurricanes in the US and neighbouring countries cost insurers around 32 billion dollars, typhoons in Japan and neighbouring countries a further six billion.

The reinsurer said the record figures were the result of both the unusually high number of storms -- 13 hurricanes in the US and 10 typhoons in Japan -- and the increasing concentration of insured assets in highly exposed coastal regions.

Climatologists attribute the high windstorm frequency to above-average sea-surface temperatures and the high year-round average temperatures measured in the last decade.

Last year was the fourth-warmest year around the world since regular temperature measurements began in 1861.

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