Trends and Figures: Increase in AC prices in Asia

According to 2 articles in JARN, the prices of air conditioning are starting to show the effects of the rising raw materials prices, including those of copper, steel and aluminium. There are claims that the prices of these essential metals, in particular copper, have been putting pressure on manufacturers, who until recently managed to keep their prices at a steady level, thanks to the current high demand for AC in Asia. The growth of the sector, which was 25% in some places, enabled them to absorb the cost increase. But AC manufacturers in China and India now say that containing their prices is no longer as easy. In China, AC prices have gone up on average by 3-10%, with leading manufacturers such as Haier and Litter Swan increasing their prices by up to 15%. Mr Babu, President of the Indian Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Manufacturer's Association (RAMA), claims that in India at least, the price rise has no impact whatsoever on demand: he claims the room AC sector is growing by 20%, and that the central AC sector is growing by 30%, thanks to rapid expansion in the financial and information technology service fields.