Overview
- China’s air-conditioner exports to the EU jumped to US$3.76 billion in the first half of 2026, a 43.2% year-on-year rise driven mainly by a more than 70% leap in portable units.
- Sales of installation-light portable split conditioners have soared because only about one-fifth of European homes have built-in cooling and many buildings block fast retrofits.
- Chinese firms including Midea, Haier, Gree, TCL and Dreame have ramped output rapidly, a capacity showcased by a viral clip of Midea’s automated line that produces a unit roughly every six seconds.
- The heat wave has already produced a measurable human toll, with French authorities reporting roughly 1,000 excess heat-related deaths during the current wave and studies recalling the 2022 summer’s large death toll across Europe.
- Policymakers in Brussels face a tradeoff between quick access to lifesaving cooling and longer-term risks, and proposals range from stricter efficiency and low‑GWP refrigerant rules to a ‘cooling resilience compact’ that links standards, shared production and local service networks.