The recently published BSRIA market intelligence study on the global air conditioning (AC) market continued to show growth in 2018
Economic and population growth, urbanisation and rising temperatures in countries such as Bangladesh, Brazil, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya and Vietnam are the main drivers for the increasing demand in global air conditioning.
The European market also increased significantly. Customers’ preferences shifted towards energy efficiency models along with inverter air conditioning with greener technology. The US and the Asia Pacific region showed moderate growth around the global average level of 3.8%, while the Middle East, Indian and African markets continued to pick up slowly.
The share of smart air conditioners, particularly in the commercial sector, is increasing as these products enable a higher degree of monitoring and control of air quality. HVAC manufacturers continue to increasingly implement inverter technology, as well as offering fully integrated systems.
For 2018, BSRIA estimates global air conditioning year-end sales of over 141 million units and a value of over $103bn. China continues to dominate, followed by the US and Japan.
Saziye Dickson, senior market research consultant, Worldwide Market Intelligence, BSRIA, said: “Considering the maturity, the US air conditioning market has experienced good growth. Focus is on upgrading of AC units with intelligent solutions such as Wi-Fi. Some countries from Latin America, on the other hand, recorded decline in sales.
“The Asia Pacific region continues to account for the largest share with 56% of global value. China, Japan and South Korea remain the market leaders on the VRF market due to the earlier adoption of the systems.
“As the Chinese government is increasing its targets against air pollution, building owners have started to pay attention to indoor air quality. This has triggered Chinese AC manufacturers to deploy more resources on R&D in order to offer greener solutions making it a key selling point for end users.”
Dickson added: “Europe is relatively small as a sales region, accounting for 7% by volume and almost 12% by value globally. The healthy growth in 2018 has been boosted by the hot summer, a positive economy and construction activities.
“In the southern parts of Russia, sales of air conditioners continue to record fifteen to 20% increase per annum. Cooler summer and currency fluctuation were the main reason behind the decline of sales in Turkey.”
