As input costs rise, Haier ACs and fridges to become pricier

Refrigerator price will go up by 5-6 per cent while air conditioner price is set to get dearer by up to 12 per cent

Consumer appliances and electronic goods maker Haier India will soon hike prices of its refrigerators and air conditioners by up to 12 per cent due to spike in raw material costs.

"We are heading for a price increase due to higher raw material costs.. nobody wanted to do it before Diwali as it would upset the market... I do not have too much of inventory to carry. So, price will go up soon... as early as next week. It's inevitable," Haier India President Eric Braganza told PTI.

"Refrigerators prices will go up by 5-6 per cent. The air conditioner price hike could be in double digits... around 10- 12 per cent," he added.

Haier, which recently inaugurated additional capacity at its Pune plant, expects its product imports to fall by half.

The company will manufacture washing machines, ACs, TV panels and water heaters at the Ranjangaon in Pune built with an investment of Rs 600 crore.

Earlier, the company was only manufacturing refrigerators at the plant. Haier's production capacity now stands at 3.8 million units.

"I expect our product imports to go down from around 50 per cent at present to 20-25 per cent with this new plant. We, however, will continue to import some high-end products," Braganza said.

Haier India, a 100 per cent subsidiary of China's Haier group, started operations in 2004 and manufacturing in India by acquiring a 40-acre plant at Ranjangoan in 2007.