Display makers get SARS payoff

The companies are investing to meet an expected demand for flat-screen televisions that helped Japan's Sharp Corp, which dominates the TV panel business, nearly triple profit in the year ended March 31.

SARS is also contributing to delays in construction of new factories in China, Young said.

One of the would-be suppliers in China, BOE Technology Group Co (京東方科技集團), is planning the first sale of Class B Shares in the nation in almost three years. It will use the capital it raises to pay part of a loan used to finance the purchase of a flat-panel display unit from South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor Inc.

The other is a venture between SVA Electron Co of Shanghai and Japan's NEC Corp.