Taiwan TFT LCD makers slide 8-20% in July sales

The consolidated sales of the five largest Taiwan-based TFT LCD makers – AU Optronics (AUO), Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO), Chunghwa Picture Tubes (CPT), Quanta Display and HannStar Display – declined 8-20% in July, according to the companies. Reduced orders due to high inventories and decreased demand combined with lower ASPs (average selling prices), especially for LCD monitor panels, were the main reasons for the revenue drops.

AUO was the only major Taiwan-based TFT LCD maker to see increased sequential shipments of large-size panels in July, even as the company's revenues fell 8%. The company shipped 1.57 million large-size panels in July, a rise of only 2.6% on month. AUO also saw shipments of small-to-medium-size panels grow 12.4% to 3.06 million units, and the company expects its monthly shipments in this segment to exceed one million units by the end of the year.

CMO fared worse, and the company saw its July sales drop 19.7% sequentially to below NT$10 billion. Shipments of large-size panels fell 13.3% to 1.03 million panels. CPT's revenues also declined 19% sequentially. While 80-90% of CPT's total sales are of LCD monitor panels, the company also sells PDP displays and CRT monitors, and revenues from the company's TFT LCD unit actually dropped 28% on-month. Large-size TFT LCD panel shipments also fell 14.8% to 781,000 panels, the largest drop among the five companies.

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