Hamden said the shift of global manufacturing to Asia has significantly increased infrastructure investment in already vulnerable regions across China, making it more vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
“Infrastructure investment has become concentrated in areas that are traditionally very high risk – river deltas, coastal areas and relatively flat areas,” he said.
The highest ranking non-Chinese region was Florida at 10th, California at 19th and New York at 46th. India also had nine regions in the top 50.
While climate is likely to become increasingly decisive when it comes to determining the flow of capital, it remains to be seen whether it will deter investment in more vulnerable sectors, said XDI co-founder Karl Mallon.