LG Display has issued a relatively optimistic forecast for the LCD industry.

"Prices of TV panels won't fall further and may actually increase," CEO Kwon Young-soo told Bloomberg. "TV demand will continue to rise, especially after China expanded its subsidy programme."

The company, which posted its first loss in seven quarters, had previously warned of a possible, limited price decline due to production cuts by Sharp and AU Optronics.

Sharp CEO Katsuhiko Machida expressed similiar sentiments, explaining that the LCD market was likely to stabilise in March as manufacturers halted spending to deplete surplus inventory. Machida also predicted that LCD television demand would remain constant, as evidenced by a 20 per cent increase in sales.

"The price will hit the bottom when inventories are gone, and we estimate that will happen by the end of this March," said Machida. "Since most LCD makers started postponing new investments last fall, supplies are decreasing rapidly."

Indeed, the decimated LCD market has already begun showing slight signs of recovery after seven consecutive months of decline. According to Display Search, LCD monitor and notebook panel prices remained steady after manufacturers cut back on production. The consulting group now estimates that industry prices will remain the same as those recorded during the second of half of December. However, 18.5- and 19-inch models are actually expected to increase in value.

Nevertheless, overall sales could remain sluggish during the first quarter of the new year.

"TV, monitor and notebook PC makers are slashing orders for large-size LCD panels due to weak holiday season sales, reflecting the global downturn in consumer and corporate demand," explained Sweta Dash, senior director of LCD research at Isuppli. "The recession in the global economy has impacted all areas of the electronics value chain, including large-size LCDs, an area that will continue to struggle into the first quarter of 2009." X

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