Global warming and urbanization change both the intensity and frequency of extreme events and the exposure of meteorological disasters, these changes have made it more complex for the meteorological disaster risk management, which make it a priority for each country to respond to climate change. Meteorological disaster trend analysis is essential for disaster prevention and mitigation planning, and also for climate change adaptation. From two dimensions of meteorological disaster, i.e., disaster losses and frequency, this paper uses two key indicators, i.e., deaths and direct economic losses, both in absolute value and in relative value,to analyze the meteorological disaster trend and variation for the last 65 years (between 1949 and 2013) in China. An analysis of 1949- 2013 meteorological disaster data reveals several results. First, more than 1.55 million people died, both the mortality and the death rate (deaths per million people) show a significant decline, annual average deaths decreased gradually from more than 10 thousand people in the 1950s and the 1960s to about 1 thousand people since the 21st century. Second, overall economic damages amounting to 12 trillion yuan (adjusted to 2013 prices), the absolute direct loss shows a uptrend, annual mean direct loss has increased from less than 100 billion yuan in the 1950s to more than 300 billion yuan since the 21st century; while economic losses expressed as a proportion of gross domestic product (GDP) has a downward trend, direct loss rate amounted to over 15% in the 1950s and then dropped to around 1% since the 21st century. Finally, over the last two decades (1994- 2013), meteorological disasters accounted for 55% of the deaths and 87% of the direct economic losses caused by natural hazards, if weather- related secondary geological disasters, i.e., landslides and debris flows, are concerned, these figure will increase to 81% for deaths and to 89% for economic losses. Floods, storms, droughts and precipitation- induced secondary geological disasters are the major cause for loss of life and economic damage in China, and this effect is on the rise.