lcd panel price drop factory

The price of LCD display panels for TVs is still falling in November and is on the verge of falling back to the level at which it initially rose two years ago (in June 2020). Liu Yushi, a senior analyst at CINNO Research, told China State Grid reporters that the wave of “falling tide” may last until June this year. For related panel companies, after the performance surge in the past year, they will face pressure in 2022.

LCD display panel prices for TVs will remain at a high level throughout 2021 due to the high base of 13 consecutive months of increase, although the price of LCD display panels peaked in June last year and began to decline rapidly. Thanks to this, under the tight demand related to panel enterprises last year achieved substantial profit growth.

According to China State Grid, the annual revenue growth of major LCD display panel manufacturers in China (Shentianma A, TCL Technology, Peking Oriental A, Caihong Shares, Longteng Optoelectronics, AU, Inolux Optoelectronics, Hanyu Color Crystal) in 2021 is basically above double digits, and the net profit growth is also very obvious. Some small and medium-sized enterprises directly turn losses into profits. Leading enterprises such as BOE and TCL Technology more than doubled their net profit.

Take BOE as an example. According to the 2021 financial report released by BOE A, BOE achieved annual revenue of 219.31 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of 61.79%; Net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies reached 25.831 billion yuan, up 412.96% year on year. “The growth is mainly due to the overall high economic performance of the panel industry throughout the year, and the acquisition of the CLP Panda Nanjing and Chengdu lines,” said Xu Tao, chief electronics analyst at Citic Securities.

In his opinion, as BOE dynamically optimizes its product structure, and its flexible OLED continues to enter the supply chain of major customers, BOE‘s market share as the panel leader is expected to increase further and extend to the Internet of Things, which is optimistic about the company’s development in the medium and long term.

TCL explained that the major reasons for the significant year-on-year growth in revenue and profit were the significant year-on-year growth of the company’s semiconductor display business shipment area, the average price of major products and product profitability, and the optimization of the business mix and customer structure further enhanced the contribution of product revenue.

“There are two main reasons for the ideal performance of domestic display panel enterprises.” A color TV industry analyst believes that, on the one hand, under the effect of the epidemic, the demand for color TV and other electronic products surges, and the upstream raw materials are in shortage, which leads to the short supply of the panel industry, the price rises, and the corporate profits increase accordingly. In addition, as Samsung and LG, the two-panel giants, gradually withdrew from the LCD panel field, they put most of their energy and funds into the OLED(organic light-emitting diode) display panel industry, resulting in a serious shortage of LCD display panels, which objectively benefited China’s local LCD display panel manufacturers such as BOE and TCL China Star Optoelectronics.

Liu Yushi analyzed to reporters that relevant TV panel enterprises made outstanding achievements in 2021, and panel price rise is a very important contributing factor. In addition, three enterprises, such as BOE(BOE), CSOT(TCL China Star Optoelectronics) and HKC(Huike), accounted for 55% of the total shipments of LCD TV panels in 2021. It will be further raised to 60% in the first quarter of 2022. In other words, “simultaneous release of production capacity, expand market share, rising volume and price” is also one of the main reasons for the growth of these enterprises. However, entering the low demand in 2022, LCD TV panel prices continue to fall, and there is some uncertainty about whether the relevant panel companies can continue to grow.

According to Media data, in February this year, the monthly revenue of global large LCD panels has been a double decline of 6.80% month-on-month and 6.18% year-on-year, reaching $6.089 billion. Among them, TCL China Star and AU large-size LCD panel revenue maintained year-on-year growth, while BOE, Innolux, and LG large-size LCD panel monthly revenue decreased by 16.83%, 14.10%, and 5.51% respectively.

Throughout Q1, according to WitsView data, the average LCD TV panel price has been close to or below the average cost, and cash cost level, among which 32-inch LCD TV panel prices are 4.03% and 5.06% below cash cost, respectively; The prices of 43 and 65 inch LCD TV panels are only 0.46% and 3.42% higher than the cash cost, respectively.

The market decline trend is continuing, the reporter queried Omdia, WitsView, Sigmaintel(group intelligence consulting), Oviriwo, CINNO Research, and other institutions regarding the latest forecast data, the analysis results show that the price of the TV LCD panels is expected to continue to decline in April. According to CINNO Research, for example, prices for 32 -, 43 – and 55-inch LCD TV panels in April are expected to fall $1- $3 per screen from March to $37, $65, and $100, respectively. Prices of 65 – and 75-inch LCD TV panels will drop by $8 per screen to $152 and $242, respectively.

“In the face of weak overall demand, major end brands requested panel factories to reduce purchase volumes in March due to high inventory pressure, which led to the continued decline in panel prices in April.” Beijing Di Xian Information Consulting Co., LTD. Vice general manager Yi Xianjing so analysis said.

“Since 2021, international logistics capacity continues to be tight, international customers have a long delivery cycle, some orders in the second half of the year were transferred to the first half of the year, pushing up the panel price in the first half of the year but also overdraft the demand in the second half of the year, resulting in the panel price began to decline from June last year,” Liu Yush told reporters, and the situation between Russia and Ukraine has suddenly escalated this year. It also further affected the recovery of demand in Europe, thus prolonging the downward trend in prices. Based on the current situation, Liu predicted that the bottom of TV panel prices will come in June 2022, but the inflection point will be delayed if further factors affect global demand and lead to additional cuts by brands.

With the price of TV panels falling to the cash cost line, in Liu’s opinion, some overseas production capacity with old equipment and poor profitability will gradually cut production. The corresponding profits of mainland panel manufacturers will inevitably be affected. However, due to the advantages in scale and cost, there is no urgent need for mainland panel manufacturers to reduce the dynamic rate. It is estimated that Q2’s dynamic level is only 3%-4% lower than Q1’s. “We don’t have much room to switch production because the prices of IT panels are dropping rapidly.”

Ovirivo analysts also pointed out that the current TV panel factory shipment pressure and inventory pressure may increase. “In the first quarter, the production line activity rate is at a high level, and the panel factory has entered the stage of loss. If the capacity is not adjusted, the panel factory will face the pressure of further decline in panel prices and increased losses.”

In the first quarter of this year, the retail volume of China’s color TV market was 9.03 million units, down 8.8% year on year. Retail sales totaled 28 billion yuan, down 10.1 percent year on year. Under the situation of volume drop, the industry expects this year color TV manufacturers will also set off a new round of LCD display panel prices war.

Nikkei Asia reported on the 21st that the price of LCD panels for Smart TVs kept falling. Among the prices in June, that has been determined by panel manufacturers in China, Taiwan, South Korea, and TV manufacturer, the 55-inch Opencell price has decreased. The wholesale price of semi-finished products without backlight fell around 6 percent from May to around $90. The price has been declining for 11 consecutive months, continuing to rewrite the record low since the survey began in 2006.  The price of 32-inch products for small-size TVs also dropped by 15 percent, setting a new record low.

The report points out that the price of TV LCD panels will continue to fall. Apparently, one of the strong reasons is continuous inflation. The continuous inflation has been deeply engulfing the world. The continuous health concerns, and the war, are leading to a major slowdown in the economy. There are rising doubts about the demand for TVs as the customer’s needs are changing. For instance, people are now considering essential goodies rather than spending on electronics when they already have one. For example, one user with a good Smart TV will think twice before upgrading to a new model just because yes. If the old model is serving well, then there is no real reason to upgrade due to technological upgrades.

However, there is still hope for small TVs. According to reports, panel factories in mainland China are reportedly expanding the production of 32-inch LCD panels. In the past, 55-inch products were the main priority due to their higher profit margin. However, the 55-inch panels now sit in unsatisfactory market conditions. Therefore, the factories will expand the supply of small products. After all, these smart TVs are commercialized at lower prices. Furthermore, some users are willing to save money no matter the display’s size.

Samsung, which always has been a strong maker in the LCD business, is shutting down the division.The company will focus on OLED and upcoming technologies. However, we don’t know if the costlier OLED TVs are in a better situation.

There could be a welcome fall in the price of LCD TVs later this year, with panel prices continuing to drop according to a new report, and the effect of the supply chain crisis appearing to ease.

Tech analyst Sigmaintell Consulting (via DigiTimes(opens in new tab)) claims that LCD panel prices once again fell last month, with the price of 32-inch to 55-inch displays slipping a further $2-4 per panel and 65-inch and 75-inch models falling by $8-10 per unit.

The news follows on from similar supply-side price falls for LCD panels over the previous two months, and the trend has been downwards since late last year. We"ve seen already that some of the best TVs available today that use LCD panels have dropped prices in the last few months (such as the Samsung TV pictured above) – even brand new models have wasted no time in dropping from the official price.

Any LCD panels being bought to go straight into production would ship to stores as finished TVs in a few months time, so those price drops could come in time to trigger an especially juicy wave of major discounted TVs for consumers around Black Friday and Christmas.

The manufacture of LCD display tech has become increasingly dominated by China, amid South Korean panel makers withdrawing from the market and moving further towards OLED production.

Prolonged Covid lockdown restrictions in key Chinese tech manufacturing districts such as Wuhan, had however caused a major reduction in the scheduled global supply of panels, with global TV shipments predicted to fall to their lowest level since 2010, according to Market research firm Omdia.

The potential fall in panel pricing will come as timely news for those struggling amid rising costs of living – lots of people will avoid big expenditures such as a new TV, but if you need one, you need one. So we hope this means anyone buying will be able to find a good buy no matter their budget.

The price falls in the report look likely to impact the sticker price of smaller and budget entry level sets, which will hopefully mean that the people most affected by inflation rises will benefit the most from the discounts.

We should also note that lots of other factors will affect the final price of TVs, beyond just the price of the panels – shipping costs, for example. But the lower cost of parts might mean that prices won"t rise as much as they would otherwise, at least. It all helps.

In September, area prices for all screen sizes up to 65” fell in a range from $92 to $106 per square meter, with the 65” area price tied with 32” for the lowest in the industry at $92 per square meter. The largest screen size in our survey, 75” panels, continues to have a premium but that premium has eroded steadily. In June 2022, a 75” panel was priced at $144 per square meter, a $41 or 40% premium over the 32” area price. By September, the 75” premium over 32” had dropped to $27 and 29%. While prices for 65” and smaller panels increased in October, 75” prices stayed flat, and we expect that pattern to continue through Q4 and Q1.

Throughout the many cycles in the industry, we have seen that the most commoditized screen size is 32”, because this screen size can be efficiently produced on every Gen size fab from Gen 6 through Gen 10.5. Thus, when prices go down, 32” prices go down fastest, but when prices increase, the 32” price increase fastest as well. This was true in October as 32” prices increased by $2 or 7% for the month; the area price increased from $92 per square meter in September to $99 in October.

The next chart shows our estimates of cash costs vs. panel prices for large TV panels. While 55” panels have been below cash costs for most of the year, 65” prices reached cash costs in Q2 and for the first time 75” panel prices fell below cash costs in Q3. We expect that 55” and 65” panel prices will increase in Q4 and Q1 2023 but will remain slightly below cash costs.

The ongoing Russia-Ukraine military conflict and high inflation will continue to affect the global economy and politics during 2023. The recent decline of the global economy, in particular, has significantly dampened the outlook on sales of whole TV sets since the performance of the TV market primarily depends on consumer demand. Therefore, TrendForce projects that shipments of TV panels will fall by 2.8% YoY to a total of 264 million pieces for 2023.

However, the shipment performances of the LCD and OLED segments of the TV panel market will diverge dramatically during 2023. South Korean panel makers already started to leave the market for LCD panels in 2022 and are reorienting the focus of their product development efforts towards OLED. Going forward, the growth and diversification of OLED offerings will definitely contribute to the increase in shipments of OLED TV panels. Furthermore, Samsung Electronics has been proactive in the adoption of the QD OLED TV panels provided by Samsung Display. Shipments of QD OLED TV panels are forecasted to increase substantially by 26.5% YoY for 2023 and thereby notably contribute to the projected YoY growth rate of 7.8% for the total OLED TV panel shipments in the same year. The aforementioned development will also help slightly raise the OLED penetration rate in the TV panel market to 3.1% in 2023.

Conversely, shipments of LCD TV panels will be more severely affected by the weakening economy. This is because the LCD segment of the TV panel market has already reached maturity and is in plentiful supply. Shipment of LCD TV panels are projected to drop by 3.1% YoY to 256 million pieces for 2023. However, the current market situation is favorable for panel makers to promote ultra large-sized TV panels despite the cautious demand outlook. There are two reasons for this. First, freight transportation fees are falling to their usual level. Second, quotes for ultra large-sized TV panels have dropped to a sweet spot. TrendForce is optimistic that the average size of LCD TV panels will grow this year. The increase is currently estimated to come to 1.5 inches, thus expanding the average size of LCD TV panels to almost 50 inches.

Chinese panel makers have a huge production capacity for LCD panels and remain highly competitive, so their collective market share for LCD TV panels is projected to climb further to 70.4% in 2023. Among them, BOE, CSOT, and HKC are expected to retain their positions as first, second, and third respectively in the ranking of LCD TV panel suppliers by shipments. Chinese panel makers are also gaining a greater influence over the TV panel market as their supply concentration ratio continues to rise. Turning to panel makers based in Taiwan, Innolux will be able to raise its market share for LCD TV panels to around 14.1% in 2023. The growth will be mainly attributed to the rerouting of the orders resulting from CEC-Panda scaling back its supply of 38.5-inch products. As for AUO, its market share for LCD TV panels will also elevate slightly to 5.2% due to the growth of orders from its main clients.

Regarding Korean and Japanese panel makers, LGD will see its market share for LCD TV panels retreat to 4.6% in 2023 since its P7 fab in South Korea produced its last batch of LCD TV panels in December last year. Sharp has been facing weak demand for the products from its fabs in Japan, but more new products are being manufactured at its Gen10.5 fab in Guangzhou, China. Taking account of these developments, Sharp’s market share is forecasted to reach 5.7% in 2023.

TrendForce points out that based on current observations, the risk of a supply-demand imbalance is going to be higher for IT panels than for TV panels during 2023. Since TVs have larger screens, the consumption of production capacity proceeds at a faster pace for TV panels. TrendForce is not ruling out the possibility that panel makers could adjust their product mixes to give more weight to TV panels if they find that the production capacity for IT panels has been idling too long. Such development would certainly affect the future supply-demand dynamics of the TV panel market as well. Moreover, panel makers will be under pressure to turn from loss to profit this year, so the strategy for adjusting capacity utilization rate will be very important to them. If suppliers fail to maintain discipline, then the whole panel market will unlikely return to a balanced state in 2023.

LCD TV panel prices have stopped falling after sliding below suppliers" cash-cost levels, according to industry sources. Additionally, aggressive production cuts by panel makers also have helped bring a stop to falling prices.

According to Pan Tai-chi, general manager of the TV Business Center of Innolux, TV panel inventories at most TV vendors and channel operators have bottomed out, and correspondent TV panel prices have risen since the second half of October.

Sales dynamics for TVs and monitors with high CP (cost-performance) ratios have started gaining momentum recently as current panel prices have made high CP display products more affordable, Pan said.

It was the supply side that drove the recent price hikes instead of being pushed up by increasing demand, Pan noted, noting that the price increases will sustain for a more extended period only when demand is solid enough to soak up the output.

It is worth observing whether the sales of consumer electronics products during the forthcoming year-end shopping season in China, the US and Europe are robust enough to stir up panel demand in the first quarter of 2023, Pan commented.

The current oversupply of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels is expected to continue through 2023, analyst firm TrendForce said in its latest forecast.

LCD panel prices had increased from June 2020 through the first half of 2021, the firm said, spurned by high demand for consumer electronics from Covid-19.

In supply, while LG Display could halt production at its P7 factory in Paju during the first quarter of next year, CSOT’s start of operation of its Gen 8.6 T9 factory could increase panel supply further than the current state, TrendForce said.

The analyst firm also said that LCD factories that use Gen 5 substrate or above could see their operation rate drop to 60% during the fourth quarter, which will be the lowest in ten years.

In another ominous sign for global TV industry supply, both demand and prices for TV-sized LCD panels continue to fall at the same time, recent reports from two display market analysts revealed.

Display industry market analysts TrendForce and Omdia each issued potentially troubling LCD TV display panel business updates this week as the global economic outlook continues to impact discretionary spending for non-essential items like TV sets.

According to TrendForce, the outlook for purchases by TV makers of LCD TV display panels — the major component part for LCD-based TVs that represent the vast majority of the TV sets — continues to decline even as prices for most panel sizes have fallen to record lows.

Recently, it was announced that the 32-inch and 43-inch panels fell by approximately $5-$6 in early June, 55-inch panels fell approximately $7, and prices for 65-inch and 75-inch panels, which face mounting overcapacity pressure, were down $12 to $14, TrendForce said.

“In order to alleviate pressure caused by price decline and inventory, panel makers are successively planning to initiate more significant production control in [the third quarter of 2022],” TrendForce said. “..Overall LCD TV panel production capacity in [the third quarter] will be reduced by 12% compared with original planning.”

According Omdia prices for TV-sized LCD display panels have been falling for the first year since Covid-19 appeared, while the increase in display demand area is expected to be up just 3%, half of the previous year.

Similarly, Omdia’s forecast released Thursday showed global display sales this year would decrease by 15% from last year to $133.18 billion. That compares to the global display sales increases of 14% in 2020 and 26% in 2021 due to the surge in demand for LCD panels and TVs generated by lockdowns forced by the pandemic.

LCD TV panel sales this year are expected to drop by 32% from last year ($38.3 billion) to $25.8 billion, according to Omdia’s predictions. The LCD TV panel demand area is expected to increase by 2% this year from last year, but the panel price decline is large.

“When there is an imbalance in supply and demand, a focus on strategic direction is prioritized,” TrendForce said. “TV panel production capacity of the three aforementioned companies in [Q3 2022] is expected to decrease by 15.8% compared with their original planning, and 2% compared with [the second quarter.]

TrendForce said Taiwanese manufacturers account for nearly 20% of TV panel shipments, and allocation of production capacity among those factories is now subject to “dynamic adjustment.”

The firm said TV sizes 55 inches and below have “fallen below their cash cost in May (which is seen as the last line of defense for panel makers) and is even flirting with the cost of materials, coupled with production capacity reduction from panel makers, the price of TV panels has a chance to bottom out at the end of June and be flat in July.”

However, the firm said, optimistically, “this price decline may begin to dissipate month by month starting in June but supply has yet to reach equilibrium, so the price of large sizes [65 inches and above] will continue to decline in [the third quarter].”

TrendForce said that as panel makers continue to significant reduce production, the price of TV panels 55 inches and under is expected to remain flat in through the third quarter.

“Panel manufacturers cutting production in the traditional peak season also means that a disappointing [second half 2022] peak season is a foregone conclusion and it will not be easy for panel prices to reverse,” according to TrendForce.

It is possible that if the supply/pricing pressures continue, the number, scale and duration of manufacturers cutting panel production output will grow in an effort to generate momentum for a rebound in TV panel quotations, TrendForce said.

As reported by S. Korean technology trade news site The Elec, Omdia said the LCD TV panel shipment targets for BOE were lowered to 60 million units this year from the original 65.5 million units. HKC decreased its targets from 49.5 million to 42 million, CSOT from 45 to 44.8 million, and LG Display from 23.5 million to 18 million. Innolux’s shipment target increased slightly from 34.5 million units to 34.6 million units.

On the other hand, organic light emitting diode (OLED) TV panel sales this year are expected to reach $5.4 billion, up 12% from last year ($4.8 billion), according to Omdia.

OLED TV panels are being mass-produced by LG Display and Samsung Display, as both manufacturers reduce their exposure in LCDs. Samsung Display will end LCD TV panel production entirly this summer. However, LG Display’s OLED panel production forecast is 10 times that of Samsung Display.

Meanwhile, Samsung Display hiked yield rates for its new large-size QD-OLED panels from 30% of capacity initially, 50% in 2021, 75% in April-May 2022 to 80% now, according to South Korea-based publication The Bell.

A string of new LCD factories being built, combined with slow demand for notebook and desktop PC screens, caused LCD prices to fall during the first three months of the year, and the downward trend is expected to continue, vendors and analysts said.

Falling prices for LCD (liquid crystal display) screens should help ensure that users find bargains for new monitors, laptops and LCD TVs this year, since the screen is among the most-expensive components in those products. The price declines are also causing vendors to improve picture quality to catch users" eyes and draw them away from competitors.

Makers such as LG.Philips and Samsung Electronics, the world"s two largest LCD producers, are ramping up production at state-of-the-art factories, while rivals continue to add lines at existing plants. Other big players, such as AU Optronics in Taiwan, expect to add plants later this year, which should help keep LCD prices tame.

"The biggest impact from the new plants will be in the first part of this year, but there will be some impact throughout the year," said Frank Lee, an LCD industry analyst for Deutsche Securities Asia in Taipei.

The new LCD plants were built largely to keep pace with demand for LCD TVs, which have been among the hottest-selling items this year. Cutthroat competition among LCD makers also has been a boon to users, ensuring steadily falling prices for the past few years, as screen sizes increase.

For example, prices for 42-inch LCD screens that will be delivered to TV makers in the second half of April fell by $35 each since the end of March, to an average of $890, according to WitsView Technology Co., an industry researcher. Prices for 19-inch panels for PC monitors fell $5 to an average $160.

Average selling prices for LCD panels at AU Optronics fell nearly 12% quarter-on-quarter by the end of March, and the company forecast continued declines into the second quarter, according to executives at its first quarter earnings conference Thursday.

"Screen prices have remained weak in April but should stabilize in May or June," said Hsiung Hui, executive vice president of strategic planning at AU.

The company expects the price of screens used in desktops and laptops to drop by about 10% quarter-on-quarter during the April to June period, while LCD-TV screen prices will decline by a smaller percentage, in the mid single digits, it said.

LG.Philips said its sales declined in the first quarter compared to the fourth, because of a decline in the average selling prices in LCDs destined for laptops and desktop monitors, with an overall price decline of around 10% for all LCD screen products.

The South Korean company, a joint venture between LG Electronics Inc. and Koninklijke Philips Electronics, said its average selling prices in the current quarter will drop by a mid- to high-single digit percentage compared to the end of the first quarter.

The company is increasing production at a state-of-the-art LCD factory in Korea, as is rival Samsung. AU is building a similar plant in Taiwan that it expects to be in production by the third quarter of this year. LG said it would produce mainly 42-inch and 47-inch screens at the plant, aimed at the LCD-TV market.

Other LCD industry competitors are also increasing production to keep up with demand for LCD-TVS. On Wednesday, S-LCD Corp., the LCD-panel manufacturing joint venture of Sony and Samsung, said it plans to invest $238 million to expand production at its factory in Tangjeong, South Korea.

Taiwanese LCD (liquid crystal display) screen maker Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp. has broken ground on a new factory that will produce screens measuring 40 inches or more, part of the trend toward bigger LCD TVs.

Taiwanese LCD screen maker Chi Mei Optoelectronics has broken ground on a new factory that will produce screens measuring 40 inches or more, part of the trend toward bigger LCD TVs.

The new plant, which may use 7.5G (advanced seventh generation) LCD manufacturing technology, will be able to produce sheets of glass up to 1,950 by 2,250 millimeters, good for cutting 42- and 47-inch LCD screens.

The new project should ensure that prices of LCD TVs continue to fall to levels more and more consumers are able to afford, since the screen is the most expensive part of an LCD TV. The new plants reduce production costs by increasing the volume of screens a company can cut from each sheet of glass.

In addition, the allure of the LCD TV market has caused cutthroat competition among LCD screen producers such as Chi Mei and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., causing them to increase production at a faster rate than consumers can snap up LCD TVs. The result has been a glut of LCD screens recently, which has caused prices of the screens to drop.

Earlier this year, Samsung and LG.Philips LCD Co. Ltd., two of the world"s largest manufacturers of LCD panels, both started commercial production at brand new LCD factories. On Wednesday, S-LCD, the LCD panel manufacturing joint venture of Sony Corp. and Samsung, said it plans to invest a further 222 billion won (US$238 million) to expand production at its factory in Tangjeong, South Korea.

The price of LCD TV panels continues to fall, and that could be welcome news for anyone who’s in the market to buy a new living room portal in time for the World Cup and the Christmas holidays.

A report this week from the analyst firm Sigmaintell Consulting revealed that LCD panel prices fell again last month, with the cost of 32-inch displays slipping by $2 per panel, and 55-inch units falling by $4 each. Meanwhile, 65-inch panels now cost $8 less, while 65-inch ones are $10 cheaper than they were a month ago.

The price of LCD TV panels has been sliding for months now, since the end of last year. That’s great for consumers of course, with the price of upper-end TVs that use LCD panels falling quite noticeably, including some of the newest models out this year.

Typically, LCD panels that are shipped out from the factory go straight into production once they reach their customer, and then end up in stores as finished TVs within just a few of months. As such, analysts believe the latest price drops will result in some steep discounts on LCD TV prices just before Christmas and Black Friday come around.

LCD display prices are falling because the market is becoming increasingly clogged with panels made by Chinese manufacturers, who’re able to make them more cheaply. Indeed, their competitiveness is so extreme that they have forced traditional South Korean display making giants such as Samsung Display and LG Display to withdraw from the market. Last month it was reported that Samsung will exit completely by the end of this month, while LG has drastically reduced its own production and is likely to quit altogether in the coming months.

There were fears that recent COVID-19 related lockdowns in China might push LCD prices back up again, however that didn"t happen, and with cities like Beijing and Shanghai now reopening, it’s expected that the downward price pressure will continue unabated, Sigmaintell Consulting said.

For anyone who’s struggling with the increased living costs that have resulted from higher inflation this year, the TV price drop will come as a welcome surprise. Many households have no doubt tried to avoid making big purchases such as a new TV, but if you need one then it becomes an almost essential buy. With any luck, people in that situation will soon be able to get their hands on a decent new box without breaking the bank.

Large-area TFT LCD panel shipments decreased by 10% Month on Month (MoM) and 5% Year on Year (YoY) in April, to 74.1million units, representing historically low shipment performance since May 2020. Omdia defines large-area TFT LCD displays as larger than 9 inches.

"With continued ramifications from the pandemic, demand for IT panels for monitors and notebook PCs remained strong in 4Q21. But as the market became saturated starting in 2022, IT panel shipments started slowing in 1Q22 and early 2Q22," said Robin Wu, Principal Analyst for Large Area Display & Production, Omdia.

Wu said that notebook panel shipments decreased 21% MoM in April, to 18.2 million units, or a 33% decrease from a peak of 27.3 million units in November 2021.

While TV panel prices have decreased noticeably since 3Q21, TV LCD panel shipments increased to a peak of 23.4 million in December 2021, driven by low prices. But rising inflation, the Ukraine crisis and continued lockdowns in China have slowed demand. As a result, TV panel shipments posted a 9% MoM decline in April, to 21.7million units.

Many TV panel prices have fallen below manufacturing cost, and panel makers began to lose money in their TV panel business starting in 4Q21. But Chinese panel makers, the biggest capacity owners, still haven"t reduced their fab utilization. With no sign of demand recovery in 2Q22 or even 3Q22, the supply/demand situation is unlikely to see improvement, Wu said.

"IT LCD panels could still deliver positive cash flow for panel makers. But with prices dropping dramatically, panel makers will soon start to lose money in their IT panel business," Wu said. "Maybe only then will panel makers reduce their glass input and the overall supply/demand situation will return to balance."

With panel prices reaching a very low level, TV brands were able to cut their prices further so as to raise shipments of whole TV sets during the promotional period. On the other hand, the major international brands have come into the second half of this year with a high level of inventory as their sales performances were weaker than expected during the first half. In order to effectively consume the existing inventory, TV brands have significantly corrected down the panel procurement quantity for 2H22. As a result, TrendForce now estimates that global TV shipments in 2H22 will reach 109 million units, reflecting a YoY decline of 2.7%. Global TV shipments during the whole 2022 are currently projected to total 202 million units, showing YoY decline of 3.9%. This annual shipment figure represents a decade low.

This year, the TV market has seen a continuous decline in shipments. Fortunately, there has also been a sharp drop in prices of large-sized panels. Furthermore, freight transportation costs have fallen by more than 50%. Thus, TV brands have been able to vigorously promote large-sized products, and the average size of TVs has also risen by 1.4 inches to 56 inches.

TrendForce further points out that moving into 2023, supply will remain fairly plentiful for TV panels. With the chance of a substantial rally in panel prices being extremely low, brands should feel an easing of cost pressure and have more flexibility when it comes to large-scale promotional activities. However, the IMF has downgraded its global economic growth forecast for 2023 to 2.7%. Moreover, the US, the Eurozone, and China as the world’s three largest regional economies will continue to experience stagnation.

TV sales in China during this year have been noticeably affected by government measures for controlling local COVID-19 outbreaks. During this second half of the year, TV panel prices have fallen to a new record low, and brands have also been aggressively cutting prices so as to meet their annual shipments targets. However, despite all these, TV sales in China for the Singles’ Day period still fell nearly 10% YoY. Turning to the North America, TV sales there shrank by 16.5% YoY for 1H22 as the rapidly mounting inflationary pressure squeezed consumers’ budgets.

Around that same time, TV brands also reached their limit in terms of inventory accumulation. To reduce the glut, brands conducted inventory check across all sections of their supply chains and made significant revisions to their procurement plans. Now, in 2H22, brands have been aggressively spurring demand. Full-scale promotional activities commenced on Amazon’s Prime Day, and TV sales were then ramped up to a peak on Black Friday. Among brands, TCL made the largest price concession for this year, cutting the price of its 55-inch Mini LED backlit model by 70% to US$199. Other brands also energetically promoted their particular product models in the holiday sales competition.

On account of brands’ efforts, TV sales in North America for the Black Friday period rose by 13% YoY. While China and North America have exhibited very contrasting performances for the busy season, it is also clear that TV brands on the whole have gradually lowered their inventories to a relatively optimal level after months of promotional activities across channels and corrections to panel procurements.

Another notable development that TrendForce has observed in the TV market is the tepid performance of high-end products. Due to the lack of supporting broadcasting content and high retail prices, most TV brands have not been particularly keen on pushing 8K models. And after years of advocacy, Samsung remains the single dominant brand for 8K TVs with a market share almost 70%. Additionally, high inflation has eaten into consumers’ budgets this year. TrendForce therefore projects that 8K TV shipments will register a YoY decline for the first time in 2022, dropping by 7.4% to just about 400,000 units.

It is also worth noting that Europe as one of the main sales regions for 8K TVs could be affected by the updated EU energy consumption labelling scheme (i.e., Energy Efficiency Index). Specifically, energy consumption rules have been further tightened so that some older 8K models could be banned from the region starting in March 2023. However, Samsung is planning to launch new 8K models that meet the updated energy consumption standards. Moreover, display panel suppliers continue to promote 8K products so as to widen adoption among TV brands. TrendForce currently forecasts that shipments of 8K TVs will surpass the 500,000 unit mark for 2023, registering a YoY growth of 20%.

TrendForce’s latest research on panel prices finds that LCD panel prices have plummeted. In fact, the price of a 55-inch UHD LCD was 4.8 times lower than the price of a WOLED (white OLED) O/C panel at the end of 3Q22. With the price difference between the two panels returning to where it was at the start of 2020, selling WOLED TVs have been quite challenging for brands that do offer this kind of product. Therefore, TrendForce estimates that shipments of WOLED TVs will shrink by 6.2% YoY to 6.29 million units for 2022. Assuming that LG Display does not want to sacrifice profitability, it will maintain a conservative pricing strategy when quoting WOLED panels next year. Given this situation, TrendForce forecasts that WOLED TV shipments will dip again by 2.7% YoY for 2023.

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Sharp Corpis planning to cut production of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels for televisions at its main Japanese plant, the Nikkei news agency reported on Friday.

The LCD industry is struggling with weaker panel prices and a drop in demand for flat-screen TVs and monitors. As the global economy slows, analysts do not expect the sector to recover until the second half of next year.

Sharp may cut production at its plant in Kameyana by as much as 10 percent from mid-December, the Nikkei said. The company will monitor sales of LCD TVs before making its final decision. It would be the first cut at the plant, which began operations in 2004.

Earlier this week, Sharp and rival LCD screen makers LG Display Coand Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltdagreed to pay a total of $585 million in fines and plead guilty in a U.S. price-fixing probe. (Reporting by Gabriel Madway, editing by Leslie Gevirtz)

(2 November, 2017) – A major decrease in manufacturing cost gap between organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display and liquid crystal display (LCD) panel is expected to support the expansion of OLED TVs, according to new analysis from

analysis estimates that the total manufacturing cost of a 55-inch OLED ultra-high definition (UHD) TV panel -- at the larger end for OLED TVs -- stood at $582 per unit in the second quarter of 2017, a 55 percent drop from when it was first introduced in the first quarter of 2015. The cost is expected to decline further to $242 by the first quarter of 2021, IHS Markit said.

The manufacturing cost of a 55-inch OLED UHD TV panel has narrowed to 2.5 times that of an LCD TV panel with the same specifications, compared to 4.3 times back in the first quarter of 2015.

“Historically, a new technology takes off when the cost gap between a dominant technology and a new technology gets narrower,” said Jimmy Kim, principal analyst for display materials at IHS Markit. “The narrower gap in the manufacturing cost between the OLED and LCD panel will help the expansion of OLED TVs.”

However, it is not just the material that determines the cost gap. In fact, when the 55-inch UHD OLED TV panel costs were 2.5 times more than LCD TV panel, the gap in the material costs was just 1.7 times. Factors other than direct material costs, such as production yield, utilization rate, depreciation expenses and substrate size, do actually matter, IHS Markit said.

The total manufacturing cost difference will be reduced to 1.8 times from the current 2.5 times, when the yield is increased to a level similar to that of LCD panels. “However, due to the depreciation cost of OLED, there are limitations in cost reduction from just improving yield,” Kim said. “When the depreciation is completed, a 31 percent reduction in cost can be expected from now.”

by IHS Markit provides more detailed cost analysis of OLED panels, including details of boards, arrays, luminescent materials, encapsulants and direct materials such as driver ICs. The report also covers overheads such as occupancy rate, selling, general and depreciation costs. In addition, this report analyzes OLED panels in a wide range of sizes and applications.