Air purifier sales offer hope for retailers

Due to the soaring demand for cleaner air, air purifiers will become the new growth driver for the country's sluggish home appliance industry, according to the China Household Electrical Appliances Association.

Sales of air cleaners reached 3 million units last year, a year-on-year surge of nearly 50 percent, while in 2011, sales were at 1.94 million units, up more than 20 percent year-on-year, the association said.

According to CIConsulting, China's home appliance industry has been suffering a downturn since 2011, after nearly 10 years of rapid growth, as a result of rising costs and oversupply.