China TV panel orders for peak season have yet to come, say Taiwan suppliers
Publish Date:2010-07-20
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Taiwan-based LCD panel suppliers have seen delays in orders from China''s TV vendors for the upcoming peak season, but expect demand to pick up in August when inventory in the China market returns to normal levels, according to industry sources.
TV panel orders from China vendors for the peak season usually start arriving in July, but this year the orders have been weak, the sources said.
The period between the Labor Day holiday in May and the National Day holiday in October is usually the low season in China''s retail market. This year TV vendors in China tried to ride the wave of World Cup fever by introducing pricing campaigns to boost their sales and clear their inventories in the second quarter, the sources said.
Despite their efforts, inventory levels in the end market remain high, and in turn are delaying the vendors'' panel orders for the year-end peak season, the sources said.
LCD TV shipments in China are estimated to have dropped 20% sequentially in the second quarter, a significant decrease compared to the 80% sequential growth in the first quarter of 2010, the sources said.
A delegation from China''s TV vendors recently visited Taiwan to reiterate their commitment to purchase US$5.3 billion worth of TV panels from Taiwan makers in 2010, but the sources said it remains to be seen whether that goal can be attained if inventory in China cannot be digested in the second half of the year.
As for LED-backlit LCD TVs, prices in the China market dropped significantly in the first half of 2010, during which the gap between LED and CCFL models in the 24- to 32-inch range narrowed to 500 yuan (US$73.75) from 2,000 yuan in 2009, the sources noted.
In the overall LCD TV market in China, first-tier vendors increased their market share to 30% in the first quarter of 2010, up from 20% in 2009, thanks to aggressive pricing, the sources added.
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