Chinese LCD Panel Makers Shifting Away From 32-Inch Panels to Larger Sizes

Chinese LCD panel makers will leave their mark on global supply and demand this year as they shift away from 32-inch panel to larger sizes, said an IHS Markit report. Chinese panel makers including BOE, CEC-Panda, HKC and CSOT had 33.2 percent of the worldwide LCD TV panel market in 2015 and 2016, behind Korean panel makers at 36.4 percent and ahead of Taiwan panel makers at 27.6 percent, said analyst Robin Wu. Chinese panel makers plan to scale back 32-inch LCD TV panel manufacturing to 44 million from 51 million last year, while increasing panel production above 32 inches to 32 million in 2017 compared with 24 million last year, said Wu. BOE, the world’s third-largest LCD panel supplier behind LG Display and Samsung, shipped 35.3 million LCD TV panels in 2015 and 43.9 million in 2016, but its panel shipments are forecast to drop 9 percent in 2017 to 40 million as it shifts to larger panel sizes at its new gen-8 fab in Fuqing, he said. BOE shipped 29.2 million 32-inch LCD TV panels in 2016, expected to drop to 23 million this year, while the number of 43-, 49- and 55-inch panels will increase to 5.3 million this year, Wu said. BOE and CSOT are each constructing a gen-10.5 fab, HKC is planning one and reports also cite a CEC-Panda plant in the works, said the analyst. With a potential four or five gen-10.5 fabs in the world by 2019, panel makers should “nurture the market” toward larger panel sizes to reduce the chance of oversupply, he said. By the end of 2018, China will be the largest region for TFT LCD capacity, Wu said.