2026.08.20

A first half of the year with a zest for more

Now we can summarize the first half of the industry year 2026: Two months (January, February) with an uphill climb - then four consecutive months during the past six months of recovery compared to 2025 follow. 

Positive trend.
The year began for the industry's sell-in values with two months that did not reach the corresponding months of last year. But then the interesting development occurs with four consecutive months with positive monthly figures. In fact, it is possible to see a fairly clear trend change that looks to lift the market towards last year's results despite the gloomy geopolitical conditions, which affect the willingness to buy.

Here is the clear trend change during the first half of this year:
January–February: low
March: first positive month of the year
April: second positive month
May: another positive month / market approaching last year

And now Appstat presents another positive monthly result
June: fourth positive month in a row       

Positive trend or stabilization?

The total value figure for the industry for the month of June is almost 2 percent above June last year. This means that the accumulated outcome for the first six months of the year is now seriously approaching last year's result and is now only 1.4 percent behind the first half of last year.

For the Swedish market for white goods and household appliances, the picture in June 2026 is therefore cautiously positive – but it is probably more than stabilization than a clear recovery.

In summary, the first half of the year can be summarized as follows:

Housing construction provides some future support. Although the Statistics Sweden figures for Q1-2026 show a clear decline in the number of completed homes in Sweden by as much as 37 percent, there are signs that housing starts are turning upwards again. In the first quarter, housing starts increased by 4 % compared to Q1 2025, although the levels are still low. 

The market has turned around from the very weak start of the year. We note that June is the fourth consecutive month with positive value-based sell-in-values. After six months, the market value is getting closer to the 2025 level. 

The first quarter was still weak. In February, the overall market was almost 8 % lower in value than the corresponding period the previous year. 

The consumer climate has improved. The Swedish Chamber of Commerce's June survey showed increased confidence in the future in all sub-industries. For the consumer goods trade, the future indicator rose 1.9 points to 96.5, at the same time as sales expectations improved, according to the Swedish Chamber of Commerce. 

SDA catches up with previous year and MDA approaches

In comparison between the industry's main segments, major appliances (MDA) and domestic appliances (SDA), it is quite clear that Small appliances have performed slightly better than large appliances so far in 2026:

• MDAs: still −2.0 % YTD after June but approaching last year's result.
• SDA: already back around 2025 level after June, +0.4 % YTD.

This may be due to MDA is significantly more dependent on the housing market, renovations and major investments, while SDA has a lower purchasing cost and can therefore recover more easily when consumers become somewhat more positive.

Positive volume development

The presentation of the half-year figures in terms of volume for the market's companies shows that it is clear that within MDA they are strong numbers in the washer/dryer category, which keeps the white goods figures up by 4.6 percent over the previous year. In addition, both the ”cooling” (refrigerators and freezers) and dishwashers categories have strong June figures, which help their accumulated figures to approach last year's figures.  

Within SDA, vacuum cleaners (floor care), ironing equipment (fabric care) and personal care mainly contribute to the positive volume development for member companies. Within the "other" category, portable AC and fans, to make homes cooler, are booming seasonally.

 The coming months are crucial

Overall, June shows a market that is still characterized by a cautiously positive development, where Some product categories are moving in the right direction while others are having a harder time taking off.. The June results therefore do not provide a clear and distinct picture of a broad trend break – rather a stabilization – but developments in the coming months will be important in determining whether the market is heading into a more stable recovery.

//Kent Oderud