Overview
- Retailers across Germany have reported steep, mid‑July demand for fans and mobile and split air conditioners that left many popular models largely sold out and triggered heavy reseller markups.
- Shoppers have focused on high‑efficiency units such as the Midea PortaSplit, which is repeatedly out of stock and being resold at multiples of normal prices while some chains say fresh seasonal supplies are unlikely.
- Midea has told press outlets it boosted output to thousands of units per day and has shipped containers to Europe, but firms and retailers say arrival timing and local quantities remain uncertain for consumers.
- Researchers and the German Environment Agency note a trade‑off: air conditioners cool indoors but dump waste heat outdoors, increase electricity use and leak high‑global‑warming‑potential refrigerants that add to urban warming and emissions.
- Experts urge near‑term fixes homeowners can use now such as better shading, insulation, efficient ACs, low‑GWP refrigerants and pairing cooling with rooftop solar, and note longer‑term shifts to building retrofit and emerging solid‑state cooling technology.