Consumers shun air conditioners

By Lee Hyo-sik

Scorching daytime temperatures melting the entire nation along with aggressive marketing campaigns featuring high profile celebrities have done nothing to help home appliance makers here grapple with sluggish sales of air conditioners in the summer season as more consumers turn to lower priced electric fans amid growing financial hardship and rising utility bills.

Samsung, LG and other electronics firms may have hired figure skater Kim Yu-na and other sports celebrities to promote their products but according to multiple department and discount chain stores, Monday, the sales of air conditioners have declined about 10 percent across the board, compared to 2011.

``The sale of electric fans jumped by 20 percent in June from the same month last year. But air conditioner sales fell about 8 percent,’’ said a spokesman for Shinsegae Department Store and its affiliated discount chain E-Mart. ``We think prolonged sluggish consumer demand and higher electricity bills are the main culprit behind stagnating air conditioner sales.’’

He said many consumers bought air conditioners in advance in February or March to have them installed in time for the summer season. ``We do not think the sales of air conditioners will pick up in July or August. The government-initiated energy saving campaign has made many households and offices turn to low-cost, less-energy consuming electric fans.’’

Similarly, Lotte Department Store and other large retail outlets here have suffered from the declining sale of air conditioners, while electric fans are selling briskly.

Besides the continued domestic consumption slump, they pointed out that the government increased utility charges in August and December of last year in a bid to lower power consumption and reduce the deficits at the Korea Electric Power Corp.

Fearing a repeat of a nationwide rolling blackout last September, the government plans to soon further increase electricity costs.

In May, the state-run electricity supplier asked the government to allow it to raise utility bills by an average of 13.1 percent as soon as possible to deal with a worsening balance sheet and to help reduce power consumption.

In response, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy has hinted at agreeing to up electricity charges by more than 5 percent, despite concerns of growing inflationary pressure.