China’s BOE Technology Group (京東方) replaced Taiwan-based flatpanel maker Innolux Corp (群創) to become the third-largest TV screen supplier in the world last month, according a report by market information advisory firm TrendForce Corp (集邦科技).
The strong showing made by BOE reflected the Chinese firm’s improvement in its yield rate, which boosted its TV panel shipments last month, the report said, adding that BOE bucked the downturn of global TV screen shipments in the month.
Last month, BOE shipped 3.24 million TV panels, up 1.2 percent from a month earlier, while Innolux, which felt the pinch of the impact resulting from a magnitude 6.4 earthquake in southern Taiwan last month, shipped 2.66 million TV screens, down 21.9 percent from a month earlier.
TrendForce said that BOE has also benefited from its efforts to maintain production capacity of the benchmark 32-inch TV panels in the month.
In addition to the damage caused by the earthquake, Trendforce said, Innolux witnessed its production fall due to fewer working days during the Lunar New Year holiday last month.
BOE was the only one among the top six TV panel suppliers in the world to record a month-on-month increase in shipments last month. International TV panel shipments fell 8.7 percent last month from a month earlier to 17.88 million units, TrendForce said.
The advisory firm said that the decline in the international TV panel shipments also reflected slow season effects in the first quarter.
LG Display Co of South Korea retained its position as the world’s largest TV panel supplier last month, when the South Korean firm shipped 3.83 million TV screens, down 8.1 percent from a month earlier.
TrendForce said that LG cut its production last month to shield itself from losses since prices of 32-inch TV screens had fallen to a level closer to their production costs at a time of an international supply glut.
Samsung Display Co, a subsidiary of South Korea’s Samsung Group came in second last month, unchanged from a month earlier, after shipping 3.38 million TV panels, down 1.8 percent month-on-month, TrendForce said.
The smaller decline of Samsung Display’s sales showed that buyers shifted their orders from Innolux to the South Korean firm after the earthquake, TrendForce added.
China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co (華星光電) took fifth position after shipping 2.29 million TV panels last month, down 8.9 percent from a month earlier, on the back of slow season effects, the research report said.
Taiwan’s AU Optronics Corp (AUO, 友達) shipped 1.76 million TV screens last month, down 8.1 percent from a month earlier, to rank as the sixth-largest supplier in the world, unchanged from January, TrendForce said.
The advisory firm said that AUO’s production was cut by fewer working days due to the Lunar New Year holiday.
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