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The Chinese government said that it would expand an existing subsidy program to encourage the purchase of new vehicles and home appliances, thereby boosting domestic spending. China will now allocate 5B yuan ($733M) for owners of light trucks and passenger vans who upgrade to new models. It also plans to spend 2B yuan ($293M) to fund discounts of new purchases of home appliances when customers turn in old goods, which will possibly give support to domestic copper demand. The plan will apply to almost all household appliances, including air-conditioners, television sets, refrigerators, washing machines and computers. Exports of these have been weak and the plan will help local producers to de-stock more quickly.

This week, GE announced that in the first quarter of next year the company will "introduce" energy management-enabled appliances that can be controlled remotely by the local utility. GE says it is working on smart refrigerators, ranges, washer and dryers, dishwashers and microwave ovens, and it will use some of the first smart appliances in select homes in a pilot program in Louisville, Ky., with Louisville Gas and Electric Company.

Haier Group Corp., a leading Chinese appliance manufacturer, has expressed an interest in acquiring Fisher & Paykel Appliances, a smaller New Zealand-based appliance maker. Haier already owns a 20% shareholding of the New Zealand company and has exclusive rights to sell its product range in China. F&P also sells Haier's products in the Australia, New Zealand and more recently in the Irish markets.

According to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, the home appliances 'trade in' policy realized RMB121.1B of sales income in 2010. Sales income and sales volume amounted to RMB16.6B and 3.6 million sets respectively in Q4 2010. Value was up by 142.7% and volume 147.7% from the same period a year ago. A joint programme of the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Environmental Protection stated that effective from June 2010, the policy would be launched in 19 additional provinces and cities, in addition to the existing nine. The time period of the policy was extended to the end of 2011. Home appliances covered by the programme include television sets, refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners and computers.

Antaike reported that sales income from the 'traded in' home appliances policy reached 150B yuan by the end of 2nd March 2011. In addition, volume of new and old appliances amounted to 40M and 41M sets respectively. Appliances included in the policy are TV sets, refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners and computers. The scheme has triggered a considerable consumption volume of copper semis, such as copper commercial tube used in the manufacturing of refrigerators and air conditioners.

The Chinese government announced that it will terminate its old-for-new home appliances subsidy scheme on 31st December 2011. The subsidy, which was introduced on 1st June, provides consumers in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Fuzhou, Changsha and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Guangdong with a 10% discount on a selected group of appliances. These include televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, air-conditioners and computers. All of these appliances are major end use segments for copper semis products.

Panasonic encouraged by the Japanese Home Appliance Recycling Law has set up a lab called the 'Eco Technology Center' to recycle these products with the cooperation of consumers, retailers and of course manufacturers.

TC 61 - Safety of household and similar electrical appliances

The Ministry of Finance announced that a subsidy package worth RMB14.0B (US$2.22B) will be introduced to encourage sales of energy-saving desktop computers and air conditioners. The subsidy program will last one year and it is hoped that it will result in the market share of energy-saving products rising to 40% of the total.

MUMBAI: Bogged down by rising costs of key inputs like steel and plastics, makers of consumer appliances have begun hiking prices, with some companies even eyeing a 5-10% increase.

China is planning to promote energy efficient appliances such as air conditioners in a bid to save 75 TW hours of power a year, according to report from Reuters.

"Particular requirements for appliances to recover and/or recycle refrigerant from air conditioning and refrigeration equipment"

Rohm and Haas Company has reported second quarter 2008 sales of $2,567 million, a 17% increase over the same period in 2007, with Electronic Materials and the chemical businesses outside North America delivering strong growth. The Electronic Materials Group comprises two reportable segments which provide materials for use in applications such as telecommunications, consumer electronics and household appliances. Sales for the Electronic Materials Group were $536 million in the second quarter of 2008, up 34% over the same period in 2007, reflecting the impact of acquisitions in Display Technologies as well as solid organic growth of Electronic Technologies. The Electronic Technologies segment is comprised of the company's Semiconductor Technologies, Circuit Board Technologies and Packaging and Finishing Technologies business units. Sales for the segment of $460 million were up 16% versus the second quarter of 2007, driven by strong growth in Asia for all business units. Sales in the second quarter excluding precious metals pass-through sales were up 15%. Semiconductor Technologies sales grew 13%, reflecting strong demand and favorable currencies, particularly in the Asia Pacific Region. Circuit Board Technologies sales increased 20% as compared to the same period last year, with solid growth in the Asia Pacific Region more than offsetting declines in North America. Packaging and Finishing Technologies sales rose 20% versus last year, primarily driven by strong growth in precious metal sales and in process sales. Adjusted pre-tax earnings for this segment of $107 million were up 11% from the second quarter of 2007, reflecting increased demand and favorable currencies, partially offset by higher metal costs and increased costs related to expansion efforts, including the new Asia Technical Center in Taiwan.\n\n\n

Growth in Asia is illustrated from this reporting at multiple levels of business - Opportunities are available for copper in a multitude of applications.