International. The Building Services Research and Information Association (BSRIA) indicated in a recent study that the contraction of the global air conditioning (AC) market slowed in 2016 with a 2% drop in product sales by volume and a 1% drop in value.
This compares to a 5% drop in value in 2015. The global AC market was valued at $92.6 billion, with package products accounting for nearly 85% of the value. In this particular sector, Asia-Pacific represents the largest market.
Sales of AC products in the Americas remained stable in volume in 2016, despite the Brazilian market falling (-46%). The European AC market grew by 13% in 2016. The MEIA region (Middle East, India and Africa) recorded a small decline in 2016 after two years of growth.
Focus on split systems: Split systems represent the largest segment of the global AC market, comprising more than 80% of the market in terms of volume. Among the divisions, multi-splits account for 3% and variable refrigerant flow (VRF) accounts for 14% of the global market in 2016 in terms of value.
For its part, JARN estimates that the global scale of the VRF market amounts to almost 1.5 billion units in 2016. This represents an increase of 21.9% over 2015. China represents the most attractive and largest VRF market in the world, with almost 60% of the global market.
