Prices of panels for smartphone displays were in an uptrend from the start of the fourth quarter of 2015 to just before the Chinese New Year holidays this year. Sales of smartphone panels during the period benefitted from strong export demand for Chinese panel products and clients stocking up for Chinese New Year sales events.
WitsView, a division of TrendForce, reports that large-size LCD panel shipments for this January totaled 57.47 million units, down 16.8% from a month ago. Most panel makers posted declining results, but Panasonic LCD and Sharp were able to grow their shipments against market headwinds because they had shorter base periods.
After several rounds of long and difficult negotiation, major electronics brand Sharp finally accepted the acquisition offer made by Taiwan-based contract manufacturer Foxconn (also known as Hon Hai Precision Industry) on February 25. This tie-up, which has been a trending topic within the global technology sector, will have a major and long-term impact on the display industry and the related panel application markets, according to WitsView, a division of TrendForce.
The powerful 6.4-magnitude earthquake that struck Tainan, Taiwan, on February 6 was a significant intervening variable in the LCD panel market during the off-peak season, reports WitsView, a division of TrendForce. Besides causing damages to Innolux’s Gen-5 and Gen-6 fabs, the earthquake is expected to have reduced the capacities of other production facilities in the affected area by about 5~10% for the month.
Television technology took center stage at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, with major brands showing off their latest high-resolution sets during the event. “Ultra-high-definition (UHD) resolution is the basis from which TV brands will make further improvements on their products,” said Boyce Fan, senior research manager for WitsView, a division of TrendForce.
