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Prime View says Q3 results improving; mum on profits

Prime View International Co (元太科技), the world's third-largest maker of medium-sized flat-panel screens for consumer electronics, including portable DVD players, yesterday said third quarter results would improve as panel prices stabilize.

But the company declined to comment on whether it would start to eke out profits during the third quarter after posting three straight quarterly losses since the final quarter of last year, as panel prices for middle-sized screens, or bigger than 7 inches diagonally, have dived as much as 25 percent.

"As prices are holding steady now, profit margins for the third quarter will be better than in the second quarter," Prime View chairman Scott Liu (劉思誠) told reporters yesterday at a press briefing.

Prime View yesterday posted September sales at NT$1.2 billion, bringing the company's third quarter sales to NT$3.81 billion, up about 30 percent from NT$2.96 billion in the second quarter.

Prime View tracks behind South Korean-Dutch tie-up LG Philips LCD Co, the world's biggest maker of liquid-crystal-display (LCD) panels, and Taiwan's Innolux Display Corp (群創) in the middle-sized slim-screen sector.

Prime View posted losses of NT$256.77 million, or NT$0.6 per share in the first half of the year, after reporting losses of NT$150 million, or NT$0.35 a share, in the last quarter of last year.

Liu blamed a supply glut behind the quarters-long price fall and poor bottom line of his company as more players joined the market.

Computer and television liquid crystal display (LCD) panel makers, who suffered from overcapacity, started to expand to the small- and medium-sized area to consume excessive output, he said.

"Prime View suffered after large-size panel makers, such as AU Optronics Corp (友達光電), chose to expand to make 7-inch LCD screens for portable DVD players to consume their output," said Jane Hsu (徐玉娟), an analyst with market researcher DisplaySearch.

Still, Liu said messages from the firm's customers showed that demand will be stronger in the fourth quarter compared to a year ago.

"The fourth quarter [of this year] will not be as slow as others. Revenues will increase from the same period last year," Liu said.

"No big price decline will occur," he added.

Liu yesterday also said the firm will not be aggressive in acquiring a less advanced plant from local LCD-panel maker HannStar Display Corp (瀚宇彩晶), dismissing local Chinese-language media reports.

"Capacity expansion is not our priority. But, if the price is right, Prime View will not rule out the possibility," he said.

Prime View shares dropped 1.69 percent to NT$14.55 on the GRETAI Securities Market yesterday.
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