China’s refrigerant prices are suddenly looking a lot less comfortable. Prices for the two big names in the sector, R32 and R134a, have climbed to their highest levels in nearly a decade as supply tightens and demand keeps rising across air conditioning, cold storage, and electric vehicles.
As of June 12, the average market price of R32 was 62,500 yuan per ton, while R134a averaged 59,727 yuan per ton. Compared with the same period a year earlier, those prices were up 34.13% and 30.77%, respectively, and both reached a new high in nearly 10 years.
That kind of move is more than a commodity footnote. Refrigerants sit inside products people buy by the millions, so a price spike here can ripple into equipment costs, maintenance bills, and margins for manufacturers that were already dealing with thin breathing room.
R32 and R134a prices surge
R32 is widely used in air conditioners, which makes it the more obvious bellwether for household and commercial cooling demand. R134a is heavily used in electric vehicles, so its jump is a reminder that the refrigerant story is no longer just about summer heat and warehouse freezers; it is also tied to the EV supply chain.
Why refrigerant recycling suddenly looks more attractive
The industry’s tight supply is also exposing a big gap in recovery rates. Global refrigerant recycling stands at roughly 25% to 35%, while China is still below 10%, leaving plenty of room for collection, purification, and reuse businesses to grow.
That is the part of the market that can cash in on high prices without waiting for new production to catch up. In sectors where refrigerants are used everywhere but noticed by almost no one, scarcity tends to turn recycling from an afterthought into a serious line item.
What happens next for supply and pricing
The obvious question is whether producers can ease the squeeze fast enough to cool prices. If demand keeps rising across air conditioners, storage systems, and EV-related uses, the recycling business should keep getting more attention, especially from companies that can turn old gas into usable supply instead of waiting for the next price spike to do the marketing for them.