Consumers may feel the heat while AC manufacturers may make merry this summer

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Manufactures of cooling appliances are expecting a robust demand this summer season after a lull in 2020.

According to a summer forecast for the period March to May 2021 issued on March 1, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has said that it expects day temperatures to remain above-normal in select regions across the country.

AC makers expect the spike in temperatures this summer to push sales in the coming months.

“We are expecting a robust demand for cooling appliances against the backdrop of early and hot summer along with a pent-up demand as last year was a washout for ACs.” said Manish Sharma, President and CEO, Panasonic India and South Asia.

Talking about inventory planning and retail reach, Sharma said, “At Panasonic, we manufacture our ACs at our Technopark, Jhajjar plant and are all geared up to address the growing demands from both rural and urban audience. In fact, we have stocked up our inventories, invested in displays and marketing initiatives across offline and online channels. To further, facilitate a seamless purchase for our partners and customers we have opened up WhatsApp Chatbot platform for sales.”

Sharma said in the past 3-4 months, there has been a 25% growth in the air conditioner segment and they expect the trend to continue.

On the demand outlook, he said a complete picture would be available at the end of this quarter.

The other concern for AC manufacturers is the rising commodity prices. Inflationary commodity trends have forced manufacturers to hike prices. Prices of copper, steel and plastic have been on the rise.

Talking about the hike in commodity prices, Vandana Bharti, AVP, Commodity Research from SMC Global said: “Copper is very important in AC manufacturing. Due to COVID, the shipment of such metals are on halt and is not in full swing. We are dependent on China when it comes to components of any electronic items. With the cost of raw materials like copper and aluminum increasing, it will have an impact on the cost price of air-conditioners”.