Consumers could face higher prices for air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators and LED TVs this festive season, with leading appliance and consumer electronics makers planning price hikes of up to 8% from October 1 as rising commodity and freight costs squeeze margins.The latest increase comes ahead of the peak festive shopping period and marks the third round of price hikes by the industry in 2026.Manufacturers said sustained increases in copper, aluminium, steel and crude oil derivatives, along with higher freight costs and currency volatility linked to the West Asia crisis, have made further price revisions necessary.Air-conditioner prices are expected to rise by around 5-8%, while some manufacturers are raising prices of washing machines, refrigerators and LED TVs by 3-4%. Other companies are still assessing the impact of higher input costs, PTI reported.AC prices to rise 5-8%Companies including Blue Star, Godrej Appliances, Haier, Daikin and Super Plastronics have announced or confirmed price increases ranging from 4% to 10% across categories.LG and Bosch Home Comfort, which owns the Hitachi air-conditioner brand, have also increased AC prices by around 5%, according to PTI sources. Panasonic, meanwhile, is still evaluating the situation.Blue Star Managing Director B Thiagarajan said prices of ACs and deep freezers had already increased by 5-8% because of higher commodity costs.“All the commodity prices have been going up because of the war. Copper, steel and plastics have all become costlier,” he said, adding that this is the third price increase undertaken by the company this year.Compared with last year’s festive season, Thiagarajan said costs have risen by around 15%. However, with GST benefits of about 10% now available to consumers, the net impact for buyers would be roughly 5%, he said.Companies see more price hikes aheadKamal Nandi, Business Head and Executive Vice President, Appliances Business, Godrej Enterprises Group, said another industry-wide price increase had become ‘inevitable’ after commodity prices rose 8-10% since the previous revision.“Price hikes of 5-7 per cent across categories will happen. The timing may differ from brand to brand, with some implementing it from October and others from November, but it has to happen,” he said.Nandi, however, said consumers could still buy appliances at existing prices during the festive season because dealers and distributors had stocked products before the price increases.“There are pipelines which will last for about a month to one-and-a-half months. Diwali should largely get covered with old-price inventory. Post-Diwali, the new prices will certainly take effect,” he added.Haier plans multiple rounds of hikesHaier India President NS Satish said the company had little choice but to raise prices as input costs continued to climb. “If we avoid taking price hikes, we will lose money. If we increase prices, sales may be slightly impacted, but there is no choice,” he said.Haier plans to increase prices of room air conditioners by around 5% from October 1. It may undertake further increases after Diwali and again in January if input costs remain elevated.The company has also confirmed a 2-3% increase in prices of other products, including LED TVs and washing machines.Satish said copper prices had risen sharply over the past year, increasing manufacturing costs, particularly for air conditioners, where copper is a key component.He said Haier expects a cumulative price increase of around 15% between now and January — 5% from October, another 5% around December and a further 5% in January.Copper prices, which were around 8,000-9,000 per metric tonne last year, have now touched $14,500 and are expected to rise further, Satish said. An air conditioner typically requires around 3-4 kg of copper.Festive demand faces a testThe timing of the price increases is significant because the festive period from Onam through Dussehra and Diwali typically accounts for around 30-40% of annual sales for appliance manufacturers, according to sector reports.Daikin Airconditioning India Chairman and Managing Director Kanwaljeet Jawa said the company had already raised prices by 8-10% from September 16.“Copper prices have gone up by almost 25-35 per cent. The dollar is strengthening and commodity prices continue to rise. Companies are under tremendous pressure,” he said.Jawa said consumer demand remained strong for now but acknowledged that prolonged cost pressures could affect the market.“I don’t know what will happen going forward, but everybody is aware of the reality in the marketplace right now. It might affect things in the long term if the situation doesn’t improve,” he said.Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd, which manufactures and markets television brands including Thomson, Kodak and Blaupunkt in India, plans to increase TV prices by around 7% after October. Appliance prices have already risen by 4-5%, the company said.SPPL Director Avneet Singh Marwah said higher prices could weigh on festive demand, when consumers typically expect discounts and promotional offers.“Global instability and rising costs will definitely have some impact on consumer sentiment,” he said.TV prices could see sharper increasePanasonic Life Solutions India Head of Product Marketing and Planning (AC category) Abhishek Verma said the company was monitoring market conditions before deciding on a price increase.“The industry continues to witness unprecedented cost pressures and we are evaluating the situation carefully,” he said.Videotex Director Arjun Bajaj said higher freight costs and supply-chain disruptions could establish a new pricing benchmark after Diwali.“Television prices for smaller screen sizes could rise by up to 20 per cent, while larger screen sizes may see increases of up to 10 per cent, depending on screen size,” he added.
