A heat wave sweeping across Europe is benefiting Chinese home appliance makers. Sales of air conditioners and fans on overseas platforms run by e-commerce giant Alibaba have posted triple-digit growth rates.
A 2.35-kilowatt Midea air conditioner, launched for the first time in Germany on AliExpress this month, has completely sold out of warehouse stock, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported Monday.
The trend was also pronounced in southern Europe. Fan sales in Spain surged 94% during June 17-23 compared with the same period a month earlier. In Italy, sales of cooling appliances and UV-protective clothing this month jumped 100% from the previous month. The buying frenzy means more people are turning to Chinese e-commerce platforms as a record heat wave spreads toward eastern Europe.
The heat wave, which passed through France, Belgium and the Netherlands, is now heading toward Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. The death toll is also rising. French authorities announced that about 1,000 additional people died from Sunday through Wednesday. Deaths at home rose 40%.
Sales also surged on Alibaba.com, a business-to-business (B2B) platform. Air conditioner orders in Spain this month doubled (100%) from a year earlier. Wholesale orders for fans soared 378% in Sweden and 114% in Belgium.
As a result, major Chinese appliance makers including Midea, Gree, TCL and Haier are posting strong results. Midea said its flagship "PortaSplit" air conditioner gained great popularity this year. Air conditioner sales in Western Europe surged more than 70% year-on-year in the first half. The company projected that annual European sales of the PortaSplit would reach 300,000 units.
Gree said its air conditioner sales in France, Italy and Spain rose more than 40% year-on-year this year. Chen Shaolin, president of TCL's air conditioner business division, recently told Chinese media that some products were "already completely sold out."
Chinese-made air conditioner exports are also surging. According to Chinese customs data, China's air conditioner exports last month reached $3.33 million (about 5.2 billion won) to France, $2.82 million (about 4.4 billion won) to Germany and $7.69 million (about 12 billion won) to the Netherlands. These figures represent increases of 186.2%, 69.6% and 139.1% year-on-year, respectively.
