A think-tank led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan says that around 300,000 people die each year from disasters related to climate change.

The Global Humanitarian Forum also estimates that global warming seriously affects 325 million people and causes US$125 billion in economic losses each year.

Annan says people in the world's poorest countries are most affected by changes in the weather and environment.

The Forum report on climate change released Friday used existing data on weather-related disasters and population trends to draw its conclusions.

(China Daily via Agencies May 31, 2009)