All firms with considerable business scales in Taiwan's electronics industry are publicly traded. When they release their tentative annual financial indicators, we can already grasp the growth momentum of the industry, as well as the interactions between different industry sectors and the medium- and long-term outlook. DIGITIMES has again collected data on the ICT product manufacturing, semiconductors, optoelectronics, IC distribution and components sectors, providing readers with a comprehensive picture of the electronics industry and an outlook of the industry trends in 2023.
Samsung Display (SDC) and LG Display (LGD) will ramp up their OLED panel output in 2023 to fend off competition from Chinese rivals, according to sources at the TV supply chain makers.
LCD TV panel prices will likely remain stable in February, as panel makers' efforts to control capacity utilization rates have brought a healthier supply-demand balance for the display industry, according to industry sources.
Corning expects glass prices to stay flat sequentially in the first quarter of 2023 but warned of an overall on-quarter decrease in its core business sales.
Taiwan-based makers received export orders totaling US$52.17 billion in December 2022, down 23.2% on year, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).
AUO Display Plus (ADP), an AUO subsidiary specializing in industrial and commercial display solutions, has reported a 20% revenue increase to a range of NT$30-40 billion (US$990-1,320 million) in 2022, expecting to post over 20% revenue growth in 2023.
LG Display's and Samsung Display's globally leading TV OLED technology has been threatened by China-based makers of TV OLED panels, according to industry sources.
The Taiwanese government approved 2,566 investment projects proposed by foreign (excluding China-based) and overseas Chinese enterprises in 2022, with the total investment of US$13.303 billion hiking 77.94% on year, reaching a 15-year height, according to Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).
LG Electronics has sourced OLED panels from Samsung Display for its new Gram Style notebooks, marking the first time Samsung has supplied LG with OLED panels, according to Korean media reports.
Before microLED technology becomes mature for commercial use, miniLED-backlit LCD panels will compete with OLED panels for application to high-end automotive displays.
Display panel makers' production utilization rates are expected to remain at low levels while panel prices will stay stable in the first quarter of 2023, according to industry sources.
TFT-LCD panel maker Innolux has undertaken zero-waste and zero-pollution automation of its liquid crystal extraction process, according to the company.
Although LCD panel makers have recently seen a short-term surge of their capacity utilization rate to 60-70%, up from 60% in September 2022, most makers in the line believe demand for their products will remain weak in 2023.
As it will take time for the sagging global economy to recover, panel demand from the primary application sectors, such as LCD TVs, monitors, notebooks, tablets and smartphones, will likely continue declining instead of picking up in 2023, according to industry sources.
VividQ, a Cambridge-based holographic display technology company, announced on January 17 that it is partnering with Dispelix, a Finnish waveguide supplier, to produce a breakthrough augmented reality (AR) technology that will bring AR experience to the next level.
Samsung has struck LTAs for the supply of TV panels with AU Optronics (AUO), China Star Optoelectronics Technology (CSOT) and HKC, according to industry sources.
LG Display (LGD) may continue to scale down its LCD TV panel production, having closed its 7.5G fab in Paju, South Korea, at the end of 2022, according to industry sources.
Price for handset panels have dropped further in the first quarter of 2023, while quotes for TV and IT display products hold steady, according to industry sources.
Despiting the rising popularity of OLED panels among notebook brands, miniLED-based displays have also been expanding their presence in the notebook market.
While LCD panels have been dominantly used in automotive displays, demand for higher-quality in-vehicle displays will lead to competition between OLED and LCD panels, according to Taiwan-based LCD DDI (display driver IC) and TDDI (touch & display driver integrated IC) design houses.
More panel makers, including BOE Technology and Sharp, have begun churning out OLED displays for notebook applications as notebook brands have added more OLED-based models to their offerings.
LG will launch the Signature OLED M3, an OLED display-powered wireless TV initially in North America and South Korea in 2023 and is set to release a 77-inch and an 83-inch model later in 2023, according to South Korea-based Chosun Biz, Ddaily and ET News.