AU Optronics Corp (友達光電), Taiwan's biggest maker of flat-panels for computers and televisions, yesterday posted an almost 90 percent increase year-on-year for February sales due to rising shipments, which offset price erosion.
Sales leapt by around 87.5 percent to NT$21.6 billion (US$665.17 million) last month, the company said in a statement released yesterday. AU Optronics reported NT$11.52 million in sales a year ago.
Last month, AU Optronics shipped 3.19 million liquid-crystal-display (LCD) panels for computers and TVs after its new next-generation plants ramped up production, representing an increase of about 76 percent compared with February last year.
Sales nevertheless declined 2.7 percent from January of this year, the company said without giving specific reasons.
Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp (奇美電子), Taiwan's No.2 maker of LCD panels, is scheduled to post its sales for last month on Thursday.
"The price for large-sized panels is expected to drop moderately in the first quarter because of rising supplies and sagging demand for computers in a traditionally slack season," said Katherine Chou (
Chou said she did not expect the price to pick up by the end of first quarter.
Chou said that "stiff competition had accelerated the price decline for LCD TV panels after panel-makers started commercial production in their next-generation factories."
In the space of a week, the price for a mainstay 32-inch LCD panel for slim-screen TVs dropped 2.8 percent, or US$15, to average US$525 per unit, according to the latest statistics provided by market researcher WitsView Technology Corp in Taipei.
LG Philips LCD Co and Samsung Electronics Co, the world's two largest LCD panel-makers, are scheduled to start mass production from their new plants later this year, ahead of schedule.
In addition, Taiwanese newcomers Quanta Display Inc (
The price decline also spread to computer panels. The prices for mainstream size 17-inch and 19-inch computer panels fell by 2.1 percent and 2.8 percent at a weekly rate to average US$137 and US$175 per unit, respectively, according to WitsView.
Early last month, AU Optronics told investors that the price for computer panels, which make up about 60 percent of its total sales, would fall by 10 percent quarer-on-quarter during the first three months of the year. The company said the price for TV panels would rise by roughly 5 percent.
AU Optronics shares climbed 0.59 percent to NT$51.5 yesterday, while the stock price of Chi Mei Optoelectronics fell 1.04 percent to NT$47.4.
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