Due to strong economic growth Phl one of SE Asia’s fastest growing markets for appliances – research firm

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines emerged as the second fastest growing market for major home appliances in Southeast Asia last year due to the country’s strong economic growth which resulted in a much  improved purchasing power for consumers, research firm GfK Asia Pte Ltd reported.

Data showed that the Philippines placed second in terms of sales growth for  domestic appliances with a 19.5 percent expansion last year next to Indonesia’s 20.1 percent while Thailand was in third place with a growth of 11.6 percent.

GfK reported that 19.5 million units of major domestic appliances including washers, air-conditioners, refrigerators and microwave ovens worth close to $6 billion – up 13 percent from last year – were sold across Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam.

The research firm attributed the increase to the rising affluence of consumers in Southeast Asia.

For the Philippines alone, the value of appliances sold improved 19.5 percent to $635 million with air conditioners leading the growth with a 27.8 percent growth followed by washing machines with 18.2 percent, microwave ovens with 14.9 percent, and refrigerators with 14.1 percent.

Jasmine Lim, account director for home and lifestyle products of GfK, said a flourishing domestic economy and rising affluence are key reasons for the robust sales of appliances especially air-conditioners, refrigerators and washing machines.

“Even as some households in developing markets are installing their first double-tub washer, a proportion of the affluent population is concurrently upgrading theirs to the larger capacity models with enhanced technology,” Lim said.

Air-conditioners posted the highest volume growth at nearly 18 percent with the Philippines and Vietnam as the two fastest growing markets registering more than 20 percent surge in demand from last year.

GfK findings revealed that consumers in the region are increasingly purchasing better and higher end models, which correspondingly upped the average price for air-conditioning units in the region by as much as 12 percent.

In the washing machine category, although single tub remains the dominant segment making up over half of all washing machines purchased, rapid adoption of front load washers was observed across the region with value growth expanding in the range of nine percent and 68 percent in the respective countries.

Washers in four out of six of the countries experienced a marginal fall in their local average price.

“Although front load washers cost more than twice the price of single tub models, consumers are still willing to spend more on such models due to two key reasons. The local government in tandem with manufacturers have been actively educating and promoting front load machines for their greater water efficiency with much success,” Lim added.

Another contributing segment to the major domestic appliance sector is refrigerators which expanded by around 11 and 10 percent in value and volume, respectively.

“At the same time, the rising affluent class will also keep on fueling the demand for more premium appliances, and together, these demand will drive the continued growth of the major domestic appliances sector in the region,” she said.

Earlier, GfK reported that the Philippines booked the fastest growth in flat panel TV (television) sales in Southeast Asia with 26 percent to 8.3 million units in the first 11 months of last year amid the constant evolution and innovation in the world of TV technology.

Data showed that the Philippines posted the fastest growth in volume sales for flat panel TVs with 70 percent followed closely by Indonesia with 67 percent, Malaysia with 17 percent, and Thailand with 10 percent.

On the other hand, Singapore recorded a negative 19 percent growth in the volume of flat panel TV sales while Vietnam registered a decline of four percent.