So, it looks like Europe is officially baking this summer! As an unprecedented heatwave sweeps across the continent, everyone is scrambling for air conditioning. And guess what? The star of the show isn’t just any brand—it’s the PortaSplit portable split AC made by China’s Midea Group. It has literally become the “hottest ticket” in Europe right now. Facing this absolute frenzy where you can’t even find a single unit on the shelf, NUPIAO (Midea) stepped up today to tell the media: “This heatwave has supercharged our sales. Specifically, the PortaSplit line is already sold out in many channels.”
It’s not just rumors; people are posting their crazy stories everywhere. In Germany, consumers are reporting that every store within a hundred kilometers is completely empty. Some tech geeks actually built a real-time inventory tracker covering over 1,100 chain stores nationwide, and the result was shocking: only one single store had stock left! To make matters worse, they even launched a paid subscription service for €2.49/month just to get notified when new stock arrives. One European netizen shared that they spent two days hunting across the entire EU, running 200km just to grab the last unit—and yes, the price had jumped by €100!
Since June, temperatures have been breaking records non-stop. Data from EU climate monitors shows that max temps in Spain, France, and Germany have smashed past 40°C, with some areas flirting with a historic high of 45°C. This extreme heat has caused demand for cooling to go absolutely bonkers.
But here’s the kicker: Europe has a massive installation problem. For years, the home AC penetration rate there has hovered around just 20%, way below the global average. In countries like Germany and France, it’s under 15%. Now, don’t blame it on money—people have cash! The real bottleneck is the headache of installation. So many cities have historic buildings where drilling holes in the walls is strictly forbidden by law. Even in regular apartments, you need approval from the homeowners’ association, a process that takes months and often gets vetoed by neighbors. Plus, labor costs are insane. A certified technician charges between €1,000 and €2,000 per install—often more than the AC unit itself! This is exactly why hassle-free, movable portable ACs like the PortaSplit have become the “lifeline” for Europeans.
Enter the Midea PortaSplit. It features a window-mounted design that anyone can set up in under 10 minutes without needing a pro. Originally priced at about €699–€900 in Germany, scalpers are now flipping them for anywhere between €1,500 and €5,000 (that’s roughly 12k to 40k RMB!). That’s a markup of several times the original price. The numbers speak for themselves: in May alone, Midea’s sales via German e-commerce channels jumped 37% year-over-year, while shipments to Spain and France skyrocketed by 108%.
According to NUPIAO’s overseas business head, the first half of 2026 was a record-breaker. Sales across key Western European markets like Germany, France, Spain, and the UK grew by over 70% overall. Just the PortaSplit model moved over 60,000 units in Germany alone, with total European sales projected to hit between 200,000 and 300,000 units this year.
And it’s not just Midea winning big. Data from China’s General Administration of Customs reveals that in the first half of 2026, China’s exports of ACs to the EU hit $3.76 billion—a massive 43.2% jump, setting a new historical high for this period. Specifically, the “no-installation required” mobile AC category saw growth exceeding 70%, making it the fastest-growing segment.
In the first five months of 2026, exports to France, the Netherlands, and Belgium all doubled year-over-year, while shipments to Southern/Central European nations like Spain and Germany also saw double-digit surges. Brands like Midea, Gree, Haier, and TCL are dominating the portable AC scene. Chinese brands have seen their market share leap from 27% in 2023 to 41%, finally taking the crown as Europe’s #1 source for air conditioners.
Even Gree Electric’s reps recently told reporters that high temperatures in countries like France, Italy, and Spain drove actual AC sales up by over 40% between January and June this year.
All this hot-selling action is sending shockwaves through the capital markets too. On June 29th, Midea’s A-shares and H-shares both surged. By press time, Midea’s A-share price hit 77 yuan (up nearly 3%), valuing the company at roughly 528 billion yuan. The H-share price jumped over 5%, reaching a market cap of about 642.6 billion HKD. Beyond Midea, Gree Electric rose over 2%, and Hisense Home Appliances gained nearly 5%, proving the entire appliance sector is outperforming the broader market.
