[Insights] March Panel Prices Update, TV Brands Further Increased, Notebook Panel Prices Await Clear Direction

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TrendForce has released the latest panel quotations for late March. TV panel prices further grew due to the increasing purchasing power; monitor panel demand continue to rise, surpassing expectations; for notebook panel, the lack of clarity in demand release has posed challenges for panel manufacturers to gauge price hikes, forcing them to maintain current prices to avoid further declines.

More details are as follows:

• TV

In March, the purchasing power of TV brands further increased, driving a 7% quarterly growth in procurement for major brands in the first quarter. This also led to a rebound in panel manufacturers’ utilization rates to over 80%.

With the upcoming sports events in the second quarter, new product stocking, and promotional activities like China’s 618 sales, panel prices are expected to rise further. Despite the traditional off-season in the first quarter, brand procurement remains strong, with TV panel prices expected to see expanded increases in March.

Anticipated increases include 1 USD for 32-inch, 2 USD for 43-inch and 50-inch, 3 USD for 55-inch, and 5 USD for 65-inch and 75-inch.

• Monitor

In March, the ongoing price hikes in TV panels have prompted some panel manufacturers to reallocate resources towards TV products. Additionally, while standard surveillance monitor panels continue to incur losses, sales of TV and laptop panels are profitable. This may lead to a reluctance among panel manufacturers to produce surveillance monitor panels.

On the demand side, due to the red sea crisis, some brands need to increase their inventory levels. Coupled with warming demand in certain regional markets and the anticipation of panel price hikes and potential supply shortages, current panel demand orders continue to rise, surpassing expectations. This trend is driving an upward trajectory in panel prices. LCD monitor panel prices, including Open Cell panels and panel modules, are expected to rebound across the board in March.

Open Cell panel prices are projected to increase by approximately 0.5 USD, while prices for 23.8-inch and 27-inch panel modules are expected to rise by 0.3 USD to 0.5 USD.

• Notebook

Entering March, the notebook panel market has reached the end of the first quarter’s off-season. It is currently expected that inventory demand will gradually strengthen from the second quarter onwards. Meanwhile, TV panel prices have been on the rise since February, and monitor (MNT) panel prices are expected to increase from March. These factors have heightened expectations for price hikes in notebook panels.

However, brands are currently relatively conservative in releasing demand, perceiving a sluggish momentum. This lack of clarity in demand release has made it difficult for panel manufacturers to gauge price hikes, leaving them with no choice but to maintain panel prices to prevent further declines.

The expected price trend for notebook panels in March indicates that 16:9 panel models will remain stable overall, while 16:10 panel models may experience slight downward pressure, with anticipated decreases ranging from 0.2 USD to 0.3 USD.

Read more

• [Insights] Late February Panel Prices Update, TV Panel Prices Return to Rising Trend
• [Insights] Early February Panel Prices Update, TV Panel Returns to an Upward Pricing Trend