China to top list of TV LCD panel makers in 2020

The world’s top four LCD suppliers for TVs will be mostly from in 2020, while the total shipment from global LCD companies is likely to fall by 8.2% to 265 million units, according to market research firm IHS Markit on Dec. 18.

IHS Markit said this would mark the first time in 10 years to witness a decline in such panel shipments, as unlike Chinese companies that will continue to ship more, South Korean suppliers will be cutting their volume.

LG Display will take fifth place, falling from this year’s second, while Samsung Display will not be among the top five manufacturers. In 2016, LG Display and Samsung Display had been at No.1 and No.2 in the market.

In 2019, China’s BOE had climbed to No.1 for the first time, and market watchers expect the firm to remain at the top in 2020 with a 21% market share. China’s CSOT will be at second place with a 16% share, up from this year’s fourth place.

As with BOE, CSOT is mass producing Gen-10.5 and Gen-11 LCD panels. CSOT will also be ramping up production from its first Gen-11 LCD production line, the T6, by the end of this year. The T7, which is the firm’s second Gen-11 line, is to begin mass production by 2021.

Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Innolux is expected to maintain its No.3 status, while China’s HKC will rise to the fourth-largest supplier. HKC had earlier been cited as likely to acquire the Gen-8 LCD production lines at Samsung Display’s suspended panel plant, but Samsung has chosen a different Chinese manufacturer that had no display production lines.

In terms of country, China will ship 58% of the total amount of LCD panels for TVs to reflect a jump from this year’s 47%. South Korean firms, on the other hand, are to see their shipment fall to 17% from this year’s 27%. The 17% will be smaller than the share by Taiwanese firms, which are likely to ship around 22% of the total global volume.

The Elec is South Korea’s No.1 tech news platform.