LG Display forecasts prompt turnaround
By Kim Yoo-chul
LG Display, which only trails Samsung Electronics in the global liquid crystal display (LCD) sector, extended operating losses for the second straight quarter, hit by a steep panel price fall.
But the display-manufacturing unit predicts a turnaround in terms of profit during the current quarter, saying film-type patterned retarder (FPR) 3D screens and displays for tablet PCs will increase revenue.
During the first three months of this year, LG Display suffered from 239 billion won in operating loss, a drop from the 789 billion won it earned from a year earlier, it said in a regulatory filing to the Korea Exchange (KRX).
``LG’s operating loss for the first quarter was widely expected because the first quarter is seasonally unfavorable for all LCD makers,’’ said Frank Lee, a spokesman from LG Display.
The LCD industry is cyclical and volatile according to macro-economic situations.
The second and third quarters are usually the peak times for LCD makers as they receive more orders from set-makers ahead of the back-to-school season in North America and the year-end.
Quarterly sales were 5.365 trillion won, while the net profit during the three months that ended March 31 was minus 115 billion won, LG reported to the KRX.
LG’s cash-equivalent assets were 3.01 trillion won as of the end of the first quarter. LCD panels for televisions took up 49 percent of total production, followed by monitors at 24 percent.
LG’s quarterly performance is based on a consolidated basis, an international accounting measurement that includes all of its overseas business.
In a conference call to analysts, the company’s chief financial officer Jeong Ho-young said it expects a mild recovery in panel prices during the current quarter thanks to the rising demand for value-added consumer gadgets such as tablets.
It is seeing more demand for FPR 3D televisions in its China and North American markets, which LG sees as another inspiring factor for a turnaround.
LG is involved in a fight with its cross-town rival Samsung Electronics in the lucrative 3D TV market.
LG’s FPR displays have eliminated cross-talk and flickering, while its glasses are cheaper and lighter than those of Samsung.
LG Display is in talks with Sony of Japan and Hewlett-Packard (HP) of the United States to ship its FPR displays for televisions and laptops, according to LG sources and analysts.