WitsView：TV and NB panel shipments continued to increase in August; Downstream customers will likely “proceed with caution” in September

According to WitsView’s latest survey, global large-sized panel shipments (including the 8.9-inch and above) continued its seven consecutive month of growth, and reached 48.58 million units in Aug09, up by 2.6% MoM and 31.2% YoY. Despite reduced glass supply due to the fire breakout at Corning’s furnace in Japan, optimism about the sales of the hot season in the second half of the year has fueled the growth momentum of panel shipment in August.

Looking at shipments of the 3 main applications, LCD TV panel shipments in August added 6.3% to 13.29 million units, driven by strong market demand and brand vendors’ aggressive promotion of new models in the second half of this year. In the IT product segment, notebook panels also benefited from the introduction of the new Windows 7 and the ultra-thin CULV models, total shipments reached 17.59 million units, up by 3.3% MoM. However, LCD monitors showed lackluster performance, with shipments slipping by 0.6% to 17.71 million units, because the increase in downstream customers’ inventory level has led to weaker demand. In a nutshell, TV panel shipments continued to grow, while growth of notebook panel shipments softened, and monitor panel slipped.

As for September, forecasts show that after the overall inventory reaches a relatively more sufficient level, compared to the previous months, panel prices may face a turning point, as a result, downstream customers will likely “proceed with caution” as they defer their shipment pull-in, adopt a “wait-and-see” attitude toward the market, while inquiring about the strategies of panel makers and their competitors. Currently, panel makers and downstream customers are extremely cautious about the management and control of their inventory; therefore, in additional to the underlying global demand, panel shipment performance in the October will have to rely on sales performance of China’s National Day holiday.

About WitsView

Founded in the year 2004, WitsView, a subsidiary brand of DRAMeXchange, is composed of a team of TFT-LCD industry experts. The research field covers the development and market trend of upstream components, mid stream panels and downstream system integrators and retailers.
For more about WitsView, please visit www.witsview.com

Nicole Chen
WitsView Technology Corp.
Tel:+886-2-7702-6888 ext. 950
Fax:+886-2-7702-6898
NicoleChen {at} witsview(.)com