Japan: MDA market fueled by strong replacement demand

29 August 2011
Japan, Major Domestic Appliances

The Major Domestic Appliance (MDA) market in the first six months of 2011 was buoyed by strong replacement demand. There was a continued consumer trend towards a clean home environment and towards cooking and dining at home; this reflected heightened consumer awareness of saving energy.

Unit sales of refrigerators in the first half of 2011 were down compared with the same period of 2010, which had seen a surge in refrigerator sales; the margin of decline, however, was smaller than expected because consumers switched to energy efficient refrigerators out of concern for power shortage.

Washing machines continued their growth momentum from 2010, driven by increasingly popular top-loading washers that offered upgraded features and a wider variety of models to choose from. Microwave ovens also achieved year-on-year growth in sales, indicating a consumer trend towards cooking and dining at home as well as the growing popularity of cooking tools, such as plastic steamers for microwave ovens, that offer ease of use, timesaving benefits, and convenience.

Refrigerators cool down after strong 2010

A total of 2.29 million refrigerators were sold in the first half of 2011, down 1% from the year before. The first quarter of 2011 saw an 11% year-on-year drop in unit sales. This was due to the sharp surge in refrigerator sales in 2010 that benefited from the Eco Point Program and the record heat wave during the summer. Unit sales in the second quarter rebounded to 9% growth, bringing the first half sales to only slightly below their year-earlier level. Refrigerator sales in April 2011 recorded a 9% increase from a year earlier; some single households held off on their purchase of refrigerators for their new homes until April because of the March earthquake. Also, a growing number of energy-conscious consumers replaced their old refrigerators with more energy-efficient ones.

Washing machines continue growth

In the first half of 2011, the washing machine market continued its growth momentum from 2010, with 2.63 million units sold—up 4% from the same period of the previous year. Seven percent more top-loading washers were sold than a year earlier and their unit sales share went up by two percentage points to 84%. This was partly because some new top-loaders offered upgraded features, such as the ability to disinfect and deodorize non-washable items without water. Additionally, more models of top-loaders were added to the mid-to-high price range, which offered price advantage over comparably featured front-loaders.