Part 2. Typhoons and Heavy Rain in Japan: Business Risks for Global Companies and the Use of Weather Data

2025.10.15

For corporate representatives with operations in Japan and travelers planning to visit, typhoons and heavy rain are major concerns. Many people may wonder: “When is the typhoon season?” “Which areas are most at risk?” “How will it affect business operations or travel plans?”

Previously, we covered the characteristics of typhoons and heavy rainfall in Japan in Part 1. Typhoons and Heavy Rain in Japan: Business Risks for Global Companies and the Use of Weather Data. In this article, we examine the risks they pose to business operations and highlight how JWA’s highly accurate weather data can help minimize them.

Key Points of This Article

• In Japan, from summer through fall, typhoons typically approach and make landfall, and torrential downpours often occurs, causing serious damage such as urban flooding and disruptions to supply chains.
• Extreme weather events impact corporate business continuity by disrupting logistics, increasing risks of employees being affected by disasters and reducing sales. In the Japanese market in particular, integrating weather-related risks into business strategies is essential for success.
• By leveraging JWA’s high-precision, locally tailored weather information, businesses can anticipate risks in advance and make swift, well-informed decisions.

1. Risks Posed by Typhoons and Localized Heavy Rainfalls to Business Activities

According to the report Economic losses, poverty & disasters: 1998–2017, by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), global economic losses from natural disasters have been rising, totaling USD 2,908 billion over the 20-year period from 1998 to 2017. Of this, approximately USD 2,245 billion was attributable to climate-related disasters—a 151% increase compared with the previous 20 years (1978–1997).
Between 1990 and 2017, Japan recorded the third-highest economic losses worldwide not only due to the Great East Japan Earthquake but from weather-related disasters such as typhoons and localized heavy rainfalls.

Looking ahead, the continued effects of global warming are expected to further intensify typhoons, increase precipitation, and expand wind-related damage. This underscores the critical importance of proactive forecasting and preparedness.

Risks to Business activities

For companies operating in Japan, extreme weather events such as typhoons and localized heavy rains are unavoidable risks. These events can disrupt logistics networks, halt operations at stores and factories and increase costs associated with ensuring employee safety—all of which threaten business continuity.

Key risks include:

• Threats to business continuity
  • Temporary closure of stores, facilities, and factories
• Disruptions to logistics and supply chains
  • Closure of ports and airports
  • Delays in land transportation
  • Inventory management risks
• Employee safety risks
• Financial losses
  • Decline in sales
  • Delays in land transportation
  • Recovery and restoration costs

Japan’s summer is characterized by high temperatures and humidity, posing multiple weather-related risks―including typhoons, localized heavy rainfall and heatstroke.

For more information on Japan’s Summer Weather, please visit：Summer Weather in Japan: What Global Businesses Need to Know (Beyond Travel Tips)

For more information on the weather complexities in other seasons, please visit: Why Is Japan’s Weather So Difficult to Forecast?

2. Forecast Accuracy and Data provided by JWA

2-1. High-precision forecasts with frequent updates

For more information about Integrated Weather forecast “JWA Blend of Models,” click here: Technology

For the 2024 accuracy verification results of JWA Blend of Models, click here: 2024 Japan Weather Association’s Forecast Accuracy Verification Results

2-2. Data Provided by JWA

JWA continuously hones its forecasting technologies to address Japan’s unique and diverse weather, offering solutions tailored to various industries based on its own highly accurate and reliable data.

Examples of available data:

• Hourly and daily weather forecasts across Japan
• Heavy rainfall probability forecasts
• Typhoon activity
• Weather API
• Product Demand Forecasting
• Japan Weather Association was the first in the weather industry to develop a proprietary extended long-term weather forecast (2-year long-term weather forecast.)
  Part 1. What are Long-Term Forecasts? JWA’s Proprietary “2-Year Long-Term Weather Forecast” and Its Business Applications/Part 2

By integrating these data, businesses can better visualize risks, respond proactively, and strengthen their business continuity strategies.

3. Conclusion: Minimizing Business Risks through Forecasts and Preparedness

In Japan, meteorological phenomena such as the rainy season, typhoons, Shūchū Gōu (集中豪雨, localized heavy rainfall), Kyokuchi-teki Ōame (局地的大雨, torrential downpours), extreme heat, thunderstorms, and heavy snowfall frequently lead to natural disasters. Particularly from June to October, heavy rains associated with the seasonal (Baiu) fronts and typhoons, often cause river flooding, landslides, strong winds, storm surges and high waves, resulting in human and economic damage almost every year. Although typhoons and heavy rain are unavoidable natural events, utilizing high-precision weather data enables management to make swift and well-informed decisions that help minimize risks.

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For more information on the weather complexities in other seasons, please visit:
Why Is Japan’s Weather So Difficult to Forecast?

For the 2024 accuracy verification results of JWA Blend of Models:
2024 Japan Weather Association’s Forecast Accuracy Verification Results