空调市场增长承压，如何走出“内卷”漩涡？
中新网8月24日电 (中新财经 左雨晴) 历经2023冷年的繁荣后，2024冷年空调市场规模出现微降。GfK中怡康推总数据显示，2024冷年国内家用空调市场零售量规模同比微增0.5%，零售额规模同比下滑3.2%。
空调市场增长承压，多重因素叠加影响。中国家用电器协会秘书长王雷指出，外部环境、天气因素不给力，终端市场面临需求不振，库存高企，价格战恶化等阶段性挑战，共同导致了市场规模的微降。
市场需求疲软，行业“内卷”加剧
除阶段性因素影响外，家用空调普及水平已达高位这一客观因素也不可忽视。根据国家统计局数据，截至2023年末，全国居民百户空调拥有量达到145.9台。
国家发改委宏观经济研究院资深产业专家蔡莹认为，当下我国经济面临有效需求不足、商品消费弱于服务消费、市场预期偏弱等挑战。在此背景下，空调等家电产品市场增长承压，企业需要采取更为灵活和前瞻性的策略来应对，尤其在紧跟政策导向方面。
外部承压的同时，空调产业内部竞争也趋于白热化阶段。今年以来，铜价持续飙升，给空调企业带来一定成本压力。铜价上升的同时，空调整机价格却在下跌，短期内带来市场规模和利润的波动，加剧了行业“内卷”程度。
GfK中怡康零售监测数据显示，今年“618”期间，价格在1500-2100元的1.5匹一级挂机空调零售额份额达到40%左右，较去年同期增长约15个百分点。整个1-7月份，空调线上+线下市场均价为2831元，同比下滑4.7%。
恶性竞争，损害行业健康发展
价格战持续恶化，背后还伴随着恶性的舆论战，比如个别品牌在“数据排名”上弄虚作假；还有一些刻意而为的舆论引导，抨击“中国空调行业没有核心技术”。有空调企业表示，今年空调市场出现了一些“内卷式”恶性竞争现象，这种竞争行为不仅破坏产业链稳定，长期看还将损害产业持续健康发展。
在21日举行的“风随新动·内卷有戒2024-2025中国空调行业高峰论坛”上，中国家电网及主流空调品牌提出《空调行业市场竞争行为八戒》宣言，坚决抵制无行业担当之行为、坚决摒弃恶性价格战、坚决抵制擦边营销之举、坚决反对暴力竞争、坚决杜绝抄袭、坚决反对作假、坚决防止偷工减料、坚决制止虚假宣传。
创新驱动，破局前行
空调行业虽短期内面临挑战，但也应看到空调市场的韧性和潜力。现阶段我国空调年产量超2亿台，国内市场年销量9000万台左右，这充分证明，空调基本需求依旧强劲且稳定。此外，《关于加力支持大规模设备更新和消费品以旧换新的实施意见》等政策的出台，也将为空调市场带来新的增长动力。
“内卷”漩涡中的恶性竞争，终是场无人获益的较量，唯有创新驱动的持久战略，方能破局前行。空调行业应积极探索新技术、新产品、新模式，提升产品附加值，满足消费者多元化需求，才能在竞争中脱颖而出，实现可持续发展。
英语如下：
Air Conditioner Market Cools Down: How to Break Free from “Involution”?
Keywords: Air conditioner market, growth pressure, involution vortex
Content:
Air Conditioner Market Faces Growth Pressure: How to Break Free from the “Involution” Vortex?
China News Service, August24 (China News Finance, Zuo Yuqing) After a prosperous 2023 cooling season, the size of the air conditioner market in2024 has shown a slight decline. GfK Zhongyi Kang’s data shows that the retail volume of domestic household air conditioners in 2024 grew by 0.5% year-on-year,while retail sales revenue declined by 3.2% year-on-year.
The air conditioner market is facing growth pressure, with multiple factors contributing to the decline. Wang Lei, Secretary-General of the China Household Electrical Appliances Association, pointed out that external environment, weather factors, weak demand in the terminal market, high inventory, and intensified price wars have all contributed to the slight decline in market size.
Weak Market Demand Intensifies Industry “Involution”
In addition to the cyclical factors, the high level of penetration of household airconditioners is also a factor that cannot be ignored. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, as of the end of 2023, the national per 100 households air conditioner ownership reached 145.9 units.
Cai Ying, a senior industry expert at the Macroeconomic ResearchInstitute of the National Development and Reform Commission, believes that China’s economy is currently facing challenges such as insufficient effective demand, commodity consumption lagging behind service consumption, and weak market expectations. Against this backdrop, the growth of the air conditioner and other home appliance markets is under pressure, and companies need to adopt more flexible andforward-looking strategies to cope, especially in terms of following policy guidance.
While facing external pressure, competition within the air conditioner industry has also become increasingly fierce. Since the beginning of this year, copper prices have continued to rise, putting some cost pressure on air conditioner companies. While copper prices have risen, air conditionerprices have fallen, leading to short-term fluctuations in market size and profits, intensifying the degree of industry “involution”.
GfK Zhongyi Kang retail monitoring data shows that during this year’s “618” period, the retail sales share of 1.5-horsepower first-classhanging air conditioners priced between 1500-2100 yuan reached about 40%, an increase of about 15 percentage points from the same period last year. In the first seven months of this year, the average price of air conditioners in the online and offline markets was 2831 yuan, down 4.7% year-on-year.
Malicious Competition Damages Industry’s Healthy Development
The ongoing price war is accompanied by malicious public opinion wars, such as some brands falsifying “data rankings”. There are also some deliberate public opinion guidance that attacks “the lack ofcore technology in the Chinese air conditioner industry”. Some air conditioner companies have stated that some “involution-style” malicious competition phenomena have emerged in the air conditioner market this year. This kind of competition not only disrupts the stability of the industrial chain, but in the long run will also damage the sustainable and healthy developmentof the industry.
At the “Wind Follows New Trends: Involution Has Restraints 2024-2025 China Air Conditioner Industry Summit Forum” held on the 21st, China Home Appliance Network and mainstream air conditioner brands issued a declaration of “Eight Restraints for Market Competition Behaviorin the Air Conditioner Industry”, resolutely resisting behaviors without industry responsibility, resolutely abandoning malicious price wars, resolutely resisting marginal marketing, resolutely opposing violent competition, resolutely prohibiting plagiarism, resolutely opposing falsification, resolutely preventing shoddy work, and resolutely stopping false advertising.
Innovation-Driven Breakthrough
While the air conditioner industry facesshort-term challenges, it should also see the resilience and potential of the air conditioner market. Currently, China’s annual air conditioner production exceeds 200 million units, and domestic annual sales are around 90 million units. This fully demonstrates that the basic demand for air conditioners remains strong and stable. Inaddition, the introduction of policies such as the “Implementation Opinions on Supporting Large-Scale Equipment Renewal and Consumption Goods Trade-in for New” will also bring new growth momentum to the air conditioner market.
The malicious competition in the “involution” vortex is ultimately a winless battle. Only a long-term strategydriven by innovation can break through the deadlock. The air conditioner industry should actively explore new technologies, new products, and new models, enhance product value, meet the diversified needs of consumers, and stand out in competition to achieve sustainable development.
【来源】http://www.chinanews.com/cj/2024/08-24/10273958.shtml
Views: 1