Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Qisda (佳世達) yesterday reported a net loss of NT$2.15 billion (US$63.15 million) for the first quarter, a slight improvement of 2.7 percent from the previous quarter’s NT$3.61 billion net loss.
Management said the second quarter has witnessed positive operating income and financial liabilities were reduced to NT$11.8 billion.
The company experienced a 27 percent quarter-on-quarter drop in revenues to NT$18.02 billion for the first three months of the year.
As the contract maker of electronics struggles to turn a profit, Qisda’s president and chief executive officer Hsiung Hui (熊暉) said the firm is focused on developing products with high profit margins such as mini camera scanners, professional billboard displays and all-in-one PC touchscreen monitors, while continuing cost cutting efforts.
Such products will not add to sales until later this year or early next year, Hsiung told investors yesterday.
Without giving specific revenue or earnings guidance, Qisda vice president and chief financial officer David Wang (王淡如) said, despite weak macroeconomic conditions and seasonality, “for the second quarter, we can reasonably expect the same performance as for the first quarter, while year-on-year, we hope to see an improvement in unit shipment numbers.”
After a wave of rush orders in late February boosted sales last month, Wang was not expecting last-minute orders this month, in June or July, he said.
Last year Qisda ranked fourth globally, with 8.3 percent market share in monitor production, and third in the projector business with a 12 percent market share.
Hsiung said that even though the monitor business contributed 78 percent of the company’s bottom line in the first quarter, “the monitor playing field is saturated with numerous competitors. In the projector segment, there is still room for growth and to increase worldwide market share.”
Qisda invested NT$40 million in an LCD TV joint venture with AU Optronics Corp (友達光電) in September, but Hsiung said he does not expect the new venture to be profitable in its first year.
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