Thanks to subsidy policies for renewable energy, the global air-to-water (ATW) heat pump market has continued to maintain rapid growth. In 2019, the global ATW heat pump demand, including China, reached 3.42 million units, rising by 25.8% year on year. The major markets are concentrated in China, Europe, and Japan, accounting for 62.8%, 18.1%, and 14.9% of the global market respectively.

According to JARN’s database, based on outdoor units, the global variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system market has reached 1.86 million units. The growth rate of VRFs was only 4.9% because of a persistently sluggish economy, but mini-VRFs for homes and small offices continued to maintain a high growth rate, with an increase rate of 8.6%. Compared with other types of air conditioning, VRF is still popular for its unique features.

In 2019, the global air conditioning compressor market, like the air conditioning market, has achieved good growth except in China, but the growth rate has decreased significantly. Great changes have taken place in the global food retail industry, which has promoted increasing demand for refrigeration compressors.

Affected by the decline in Chinese demand, the overall global air conditioner market in 2019 has continued to decline compared with the previous year, registering a decrease of 0.8% over the previous year, with sales amounting to 130.67 million units. The Chinese market decreased by 8.3% to 54.57 million units. The global market excluding China increased by 5.5% compared with the previous year.

The trade war between the United States and China in 2018 has weakened confidence in global commerce, financial markets have been tightening in major countries, and many countries have seen increasing uncertainty in their national policies. According to statistics from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the global economy has seen 3.8% growth in the first half of 2018, which dropped to 3.2% in the second half of the year.

Refrigeration equipment is an important tool to ensure food hygiene and safety. Refrigeration equipment is applied throughout the cold chain and strict temperature management is required for every link in the cold chain. Facing accelerated urbanization and a quickening pace of life, distribution sites in the food retail industry have been going through a fundamental revolution. 24-hour convenience stores and small-and medium-sized supermarkets have become popular among city residents, and this trend has offered great business opportunities to cold chain equipment suppliers.