AfterDawn: News

LCD prices on the rise

Prices of the mainstream liquid-crystal-displays used in computers and televisions are rising and analysts and company executives expect further increases as manufacturers enter one of the busiest selling seasons of the year.

Analysts and company executives say the outlook for the third quarter is bright as demand picks up especially for PC-use panels ahead of the back-to-school shopping season, and supply in the market remains tight.



"LCD prices have risen sharply while companies have been working to lower manufacturing costs by moving production to more advanced facilities. That should enable most LCD makers to report a second quarter profit and the outlook for the third quarter is even better," said Hyun-Sik Moon, an analyst at Seoul-based Meritz Securities.

The price of a 17-inch LCD monitor panel rose to $127 in early July from $122 late June, according to Taiwan-based market research firm WitsView Technology Corp. Meanwhile, the price of the mainstream 32-inch LCD TV panel rose to $320 from $315 in the same period.

Executives at AU Optronics Corp., Taiwan's largest maker of LCDs by revenue, said the LCD maker will post a profit in the second quarter, after reporting a record loss of 5.11 billion New Taiwan dollars in the first quarter.

U.S. market research firm DisplaySearch this week revised upwards by 6 percent its 2007-2008 forecast for revenue in the global flat-panel-display industry, citing rising LCD prices. The firm now expects industry revenue to reach $92.7 billion this year and $102.0 billion in 2008.

Suppli analyst Sweta Dash said 40-inch and above TV panel prices may continue to fall in the third quarter but at a slower rate.

"Even though supply will increase, there has been a major slow down in capacity expansion plans in 2007 that will help to keep supply tight in the third quarter," which should prevent prices from falling too steeply.

Source: Forbes

Written by: Rich Fiscus @ 12 Jul 2007 8:19

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• 11 comments

• gizmobg

  "busiest selling seasons of the year"
  more sales = more production at cheaper costs.
  
  so what theyre saying dosent make sense, unless those added costs are just more profit for the executives...

  12.7.2007 19:06 #1

• jutsu

  More sales not always more production.
  And when demand almost equal to supply, the price will start to rise

  12.7.2007 23:37 #2

• ChromeMud

  Little hint to consumers,don't buy until the prices fall again,it's that simple.

  13.7.2007 02:40 #3

• gizmobg

  Originally posted by jutsu: More sales not always more production.
  And when demand almost equal to supply, the price will start to riseokay, well lets use old computer parts for example here.
  
  if less sales mean less production costs, then why are old computer parts 120% more expensive to make then new ones?

  13.7.2007 06:23 #4

• ugc

  Quote:if less sales mean less production costsit is the other way around, more sales = less production cost

  13.7.2007 08:43 #5

• gizmobg

  glad to see someone with sense in heir head

  13.7.2007 18:36 #6

• ZippyDSM

  I am not happy with any of the LCD I have seen,CART is much more stable and robust in color and lasts longer for half the price....
  
  I don't think it would be good to invest in LCD yet,maybe another year or 2.

  13.7.2007 20:20 #7

• borhan9

  I love the LCD products but it depends on the manufacturer. I feel LCD is better than plasma by a long shot and is worth the money to invest in.
  
  Quote:Meanwhile, the price of the mainstream 32-inch LCD TV panel rose to $320 from $315 in the same period.I feel there must be a typo in this sentence. You can not increase from 320 to 315. ?? :)

  17.7.2007 16:11 #8

• bWileyMwB

  it rose TO $320 FROM $315. read it carefully. i dont know where that information comes from anyway, 32 inch LCD TVs cost WAYY more than $320, unless they're talking about the production cost of just the display screen itself. a 32 inch LCD TV is like $600 refurbished... closer to $800 new.

  20.7.2007 09:12 #9

• pmshah

  Originally posted by bWileyMwB: it rose TO $320 FROM $315. read it carefully. i dont know where that information comes from anyway, 32 inch LCD TVs cost WAYY more than $320, unless they're talking about the production cost of just the display screen itself. a 32 inch LCD TV is like $600 refurbished... closer to $800 new.They are talking in terms of OEM & laege scale trading - more like in generic form.
  
  I will give you 1 simple example. India is very big in generic drugs. In the wholesale market one can buy 100 capsules of 250 mgs cipro for around US$ 2/-, yes 2 cents per capsule. The same capsule when packaged in foil strips of tens costs around $ 0.25 each. And I would guess you might be paying close to $ 2/= per capsule in the USA.
  
  Same rules apply to most items which have come down to commodity levels.

  21.7.2007 01:55 #10

• wazzat

  Olevia 32"can be had for $500 more or less if you search hard on the net. Plus a few others at retailers clearances. They're only 780 dpi though. I'm waiting a year or 2.

  21.7.2007 06:16 #11