TPV expects more LCD firm mergers

“There are still eight, nine players in the world, and some of the companies will be merged together to create more economies of scale,” Chairman Jason Hsuan said in a briefing in Hong Kong today. TPV, the world's biggest maker of computer monitors, buys LCD panels from eight suppliers, and will continue to purchase from Chi Mei, he said.

Chi Mei, Taiwan's second-biggest LCD maker, this month said it will combine with Innolux Display Co., named by Citigroup Inc. analyst Eddie Lau as TPV's “biggest competitor” in the monitor market. Prices for LCD panels, used for making computer screens and televisions, may fall as the industry faces a “slight” oversupply, LG Display Co., the industry's No. 2 supplier, forecast last month.

TPV doesn't expect any changes in Chi Mei's holding before the completion of the transaction with Innolux, expected in May, Vice-President Shane Tyau said at the briefing today. Chi Mei owned 7.1 percent of TPV, according to data on the Bloomberg.

TPV yesterday reported third-quarter net income rose 26 percent to $39.5 million after sales of flat-panel TVs increased. Profit at the company, listed in Hong Kong and Singapore, compared with the $41 million median of three analysts' estimates in a Bloomberg survey.

The global personal computer market is expected to remain “weak” this quarter, affecting demand for monitors, Tyau said. Still, TPV's shipments of computer screens in the period will rise from last year as the company gains market share, he said.

TPV fell 5.4 percent to HK$4.95 as of 3:18 p.m. in Hong Kong trading. The company reported earnings after the market closed yesterday. Its Singapore-listed stock fell 2.2 percent.

Innolux, an affiliate of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., accounted for 23.4 percent of global shipments of computer monitors in the first half, Citigroup's Lau wrote in a Nov. 17 report. TPV's market share was 27.3 percent, according to Lau.

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