AC, heat pump shipments rebound in 2024

Shipments of central air conditioners and heat pumps rose 19 percent year-over-year in December, according to AHRI data released on Friday.

Why it matters: The release caps 2024, officially cementing it as a rebound year, with total shipments rising 12 percent compared to 2023.

What’s happening: Manufacturers shipped 294,000 air conditioners in December, up 23 percent from the previous year. Air-source heat pump shipments reached 225,000, compared to 197,000 in December 2023. 

• Full breakdown

Zoom out: The strong year follows a 17 percent drop in total shipments during 2023, as the replacement market contracted after a few blockbuster years.

• “The entire industry enjoyed an incredible spike in demand in 2021 and 2022 due in large part to stimulus in the system and the health of consumers,” wrote an investment bank early last year. 
• “Distortions to the market stemming from the response to the Covid recession were… felt in 2023,” it added. 

Looking ahead: Between 2010 and 2022, manufacturers shipped 97 million total units, with each year showing consecutive growth. 

• Since today’s replacements are a function of shipments from 15 years ago, the rise points to strong replacement demand over the next decade.
• January shipment figures will be released on the second Friday of March.