2015 commercial air conditioners market in China

Total shipments of commercial air conditioners amounted to RMB 60 billion (USD 9.2 billion) in 2015, representing a 7% year on year decrease, the largest drop since the financial crisis in 2008.
According to All View Consulting (AVC), total shipments of commercial air conditioners amounted to RMB 60 billion (USD 9.2 billion) in 2015, representing a 7% year on year decrease, the largest drop since the financial crisis in 2008.

Among commercial air conditioners, variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems experienced a 6.5% year on year decrease in 2015, and this was the first drop after years of solid growth. However, VRF models secured a slightly larger share of the commercial air conditioner market in China, taking demand from chillers for large projects.

Similar to the context of VRFs, total sales of unitary systems also decreased, but these systems secured a larger market share. The sales volume of unitary systems dropped by 1.7% year on year in 2015.

Sales of chillers for industrial applications and large projects fell by 14.9% in 2015, but sales of modular chillers fared slightly better, with an 8.1% decrease. The screw chiller market has been shrinking for several years. The absorption chiller market dropped by 2.5% and that of water/ground-source heat pumps fell 2.6%.
Sluggish demand for commercial air conditioners affected upstream industries. Facing shrinking demand in 2015, major compressor and refrigerant manufacturers slowed production and postponed the scaling up of production capabilities.

A review of China’s commercial air conditioner market by region shows that demand has shifted to smaller cities following market saturation in medium-sized and large cities.

Source: JARN, 2016 April 25