LCD TV Retail Sales Remain Strong;
Strong
Volume to Continue in 3Q
Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) Vice Chairman and Chief Financial
Officer James
B. Flaws today updated the company’s guidance of sequential
second-quarter LCD glass volume growth, citing significant improvement
in demand for LCD glass.
“Second-quarter glass demand is much stronger than we anticipated even a
few weeks ago,” Flaws reported. “As a result, we now expect
second-quarter sequential volume to be up approximately 100% at our
wholly owned business.” He pointed out that the company has met much of
the improved demand by drawing down its existing inventory.
Additionally, the company has begun shipping glass from melting tanks
that were restarted earlier in the quarter. Corning originally
forecasted a second-quarter volume increase of more than 50%, and at the
end of May revised volume growth expectations to more than 75%.
Samsung Corning Precision Glass Co., Ltd. (SCP) second-quarter
sequential glass volume is expected to be up about 50%, an increase from
both the more than 40% figure announced May 28 and the original
expectation of more than 25% growth. Flaws pointed out that SCP’s volume
did not decline as steeply as Corning’s wholly owned business did in the
first quarter.
Regarding LCD glass pricing, Flaws said that second-quarter prices were
moderate and substantially below the first-quarter price declines.
“As we exit this quarter,” Flaws added, “our model indicates that the
industry’s second-quarter supply chain inventory is equivalent to
inventory levels at the beginning of this year. We see this as a
positive sign. Industry growth required a supply-chain expansion after
the significant contractions we saw in the first quarter. As we go
forward, we expect some further supply-chain expansion as the industry
prepares for the seasonally stronger fourth quarter.”
Strong Retail TV Demand
Flaws said that continued retail demand for LCD televisions is helping
to prevent excessive buildup of inventory in the supply chain. He noted
that various industry reports on retail data showed in April LCD TV unit
sales increased 22% in Europe, and 77% in China.
