Air Conditioner Sales Jump Up

Air Conditioner Sales Jump Up by 74% in July

The violent heat waves visited Japan in July. Retailer shop sales of room air conditioners (RACs) and refrigerators showed sharp jumps in July due to a hot spell. According to GiK Japan's data, RAC sales in July enjoyed over 70% growth in both quantity and value over the previous year, while those of household refrigerators showed about 20% rise over the previous year, and those of large models above 501 liters doubled.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan's archipelago is covered over with the Pacific high pressure, and incurred high temperatures across the country. In West Japan, the monthly average temperature in July recorded the 3rd highest value next only to that in 1994 and 2004. The rainy season was also over earlier than in usual years. Reflecting these meteorological conditions, sales of seasonal goods enjoyed a noticeable growth.

RAC sales in July last year remained dull since temperature did not rise. However, those in July this year showed a 74.5% rise in quantity and a 77.1% rise in value over the previous year.RAC sales in April this year remained level with the previous year, those in May recorded a 2-digit increase, but June sales showed a drop affected by weather. Due, however, to the noticeable jump in July, cumulative sales in the April to July period accounted for a 29.6% rise in quantity and a 30% rise in value over the same period of last year.

Renewable Energy

Renewable Energy World Fair 2008 in Tokyo

The Renewable Energy World Fair was held at Tokyo Big Sight (Ariake, Tokyo, Japan) over three days from Wednesday, July 30, 2008 to Friday, August 1. The fair was co-hosted by the Japan Council for Renewable Energy (representative: Kosuke Kurokawa), the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association, and SEMI (representative: Stanley Myers). The fair has brought together events that concern renewable energy and new energy, such as solar energy, hosted by each organization.

With the increasing significance of environmental problems, people in industrial circles, as well as in society at large are beginning to rely more on renewable energy and new energy as clean alternatives to energy produced from fossil fuels. Against this background, the public had the opportunity for people from the industry to gather and communicate, and to collect and exchange information. In response to this requirement, the three organizations have come together to co-host an event on renewable energy and new energy so that the latest information has been disseminated to people both at home and abroad and provided a chance for people in the industry to meet.

Manufacturers to Raise Air Conditioner Prices

Higher materials costs are prompting Mitsubishi Electric Corp (Melco). and other air conditioner manufacturers to hike prices, as reported by major Japanese newspapers.
Melco, a major room air conditioner manufacturer in Japan, intends to raise prices on its entire lineup of consumer and commercial units by around 10% this fall. Despite efforts to boost productivity and reduce parts, its air conditioner business faces a nearly 10 billion yen profit decline in fiscal 2008 because of the high cost of materials like iron, copper and plastic.
Other major players such as Matsushita Electric (Panasonic) and Daikin Industries and Hitachi Appliances are also considering price hikes.

The iron used for the outdoor components of air conditioners now costs 30-40% more than it did at this time last year, and the copper used for the heat exchangers and coolant piping is triple what it cost three years ago. And high oil prices have boosted the cost of plastics.
Since refrigerators and washing machines use the same materials, profits on these appliances are also being squeezed. But these products are sold mainly through mass merchandisers so it is hard for manufacturers to raise prices.

Air conditioners, on the other hand, require installation and tend to be sold more through the regional shops of the manufacturers, so raising these prices first will be easier.