Appliance sales surging

Business World

THE PHILIPPINES posted the biggest increase in purchases of major household appliances among nine East Asian markets as of October, market research firm GfK Asia Pte. Ltd. said in a statement yesterday.

Based on its GfK Retail Panel, a survey monitoring product sales by major Asian retailers, units sold in the Philippines surged by 50.4% in the 10 months to October from the same period last year. It was followed by Indonesia (42.3%), Thailand (22.1%), Vietnam (20.8%), Singapore (15.2%), Malaysia (7%), Hong Kong (6.2%), South Korea (4.4%) and Taiwan (2.9%).

Volume increase in the Philippines for that period also outpaced the 19.3% average among the economies covered.

The statement did not provide actual volumes.

When asked for details, GfK said via e-mail that purchases in the Philippines, which included air-conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines and microwave ovens, reached 1.73 million units as of November, a slower 45.38% rise from the 1.19 million units in the same period last year.

"Thanks to the economic recovery, increasing spending power of consumers in the region has been a boon to many industries, including the major household appliances sector which has managed to bounce back from its weakened performance of yesteryear," GfK Asia said in its statement.

"With Asia leading the growth in home sales globally, it is not surprising to see heightened demand for household appliances in this part of the world as well. Developing economies in the region such as Indonesia and Philippines experienced the greatest growth, with consumers here spending over 60% more on major home appliances," it added.

Economist Cid L. Terosa of the University of Asia & the Pacific said in a phone interview that demand for household appliances is a function of consumers’ disposable income; hence, a rise in disposable income translates to growth in demand.

"The major factor would have to be the record-breaking remittances in the same period," he said, referring to the 7.9% rise in these inflows to $15.456 billion as of October. -- J. A. Cerda