The estimated output of household electric appliances in fiscal 2000 will rise for the first time in four years, with consumers buying goods prior to the enforcement of a recycling law on April 1, an industry body said Friday.
The combined output value of electric goods such as air conditioners, washing machines and refrigerators will rise 3 percent in the year to March 31 from a year before to 2.342 trillion yen, the Japan Electrical Manufacturers' Association said.
These figures do not include the output value of television sets and audio equipment.
The recycling law will compel manufacturers, retailers and consumers to share responsibility for the disposal of four kinds of appliances -- television sets, washing machines, refrigerators and air conditioners.
The combined output value of air conditioners, which accounts for 40 percent of the overall output, will soar 7.5 percent. This is due in part to last year's unusually hot summer, and in part to greater demand emanating from the desire of consumers to avoid higher costs that the new law could provoke, it said.
The combined output of refrigerators will drop 2.3 percent, while that of washing machines will rise 1.7 percent.
The association said demand for household electric appliances has rocketed in recent months as the nation draws near to the implementation of the recycling law.
Domestic shipment values of refrigerators and washing machines in February soared by up to 30 percent, leaving some makers unable to meet demand quickly enough, it said.
The association predicted, however, that the combined output of these goods in fiscal 2001 will shrink 3.3 percent to 2.265 trillion yen.
The output for the period through March 31, 2002 will take a battering from an expected upsurge in imports of cheaper foreign-made electrical appliances, it said.
Another factor will be consumers' reaction to the current fiscal year's huge demand, it added.