People walk through a water mist machine installed by the city to assist people in coping with the heat on a torrid day in Bucharest, Romania, on Monday. (Photo: Vadim Ghird/ AP) At an air conditioner factory run by Midea Group, a leading Chinese home appliance manufacturer, in the Shunde district of Foshan, Guangdong province, workers are putting in overtime to ramp up production of portable split air conditioners.
Portable split air conditioners made by Chinese home appliance manufacturers have become highly sought-after, trendy items in Europe, as temperatures in many European countries have broken historical records since late May.
"We are leveraging flexible manufacturing capabilities to quickly respond to demand for such air conditioners by European consumers," said Xiong Xueqin, sales director of Midea RAC Europe Region.
The units will be transported via China-Europe freight trains to meet demand during Europe's peak summer season, with a transit time of 15-25 days, according to Xiong. The railway shipment is about 25 days shorter than sea shipping.
"Once the products arrive at the overseas ports, local subsidiaries will help proceed with customs clearance to quickly distribute them to retail channels," Xiong said.
European households have long faced challenges when choosing air conditioners. Traditional portable air conditioners are often bulky and noisy, while split air conditioners are criticized for their high installation costs and long installation periods.
Midea's portable split air conditioner, known as PortaSplit, has effectively addressed these challenges through core technological innovations, according to the company.
The PortaSplit was inspired by Midea's long-term research into European consumers' needs and usage habits, along with its understanding of local architectural characteristics, according to Zhao Ali, Europe product manager of Midea RAC Overseas.
"The motivation for developing this product was to address the market pain points in Europe, where frequent heat waves occur, but air conditioner penetration remains low," said Zhao.
It took Midea three years to develop the portable split air conditioner, which was first launched for sale in Germany in 2024, according to Zhao.
"The demand was first identified by our European research team, then they collaborated with our domestic team and an Italian industrial design team to jointly develop the product," said Zhao.
PortaSplit features a tool-free installation, allowing users to quickly set up and deploy the unit without professional assistance, significantly lowering the barrier to use.
Additionally, it has been designed with a dedicated structure to fit the windows of Europe's historical buildings, ensuring effective cooling and heating while preserving architectural aesthetics.
In countries like France, Spain, Germany and the United Kingdom, where air conditioner penetration has traditionally been low, sales have increased by more than 70 percent year-on-year since the beginning of this year, according to the company.
Another Chinese home appliance maker, Gree Electric Appliances, has also seen its distributors' warehouses of portable air conditioners with lower inventory levels in the European market.
The plug-and-play portable air conditioners, known for their flexibility, convenience and strong adaptability, have completely sold out in regional channels in Europe, according to the company.
China's exports of household air conditioners to western European countries increased by 9.7 percent year-on-year in the first five months of 2026, with the portable air conditioner category seeing a year-on-year growth of over 70 percent, according to ChinaIOL.com, a research institute focused on data monitoring in the home appliance market.
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