Appliance retailers eye new incentives

SHANGHAI'S languid home appliance market hopes for new incentives to revive sales after China's old-for-new home appliance subsidy program expired at the end last year.

The industry's nationwide sales dropped 10 percent in January from a year earlier despite the Lunar New Year shopping spree, which helped raise the revenue of 3,000 major retailers by 12.7 percent, according to the latest data compiled by the Ministry of Commerce.

In Shanghai, the sales of air conditioners cooled 60 percent year on year last month while those of television sets, refrigerators and washing machines tumbled more than 50 percent, research firm China Market Monitor said yesterday.

The decline in overseas demand and tepid domestic consumption have worsened the inventory turnover of home appliance producers, especially air conditioner makers.

"Consumers are taking a wait-and-see stance as they hope for new subsidies as the market has become reliant on favorable policies to boost sales," said Fan Zhijun, general manager of Suning Appliance in Shanghai.

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