Polarizers, ICs, and Glass substrates are out of stock, and display panel prices will keep on raising in March and April.
In the first half of the year, the panel supply chain continued to rush for materials. As Sinocrystal(LCD Manufacturer) know, it is difficult to solve the shortage of polarizers, driver ICs, and glass substrates in the first half of the year. In particular, panel manufacturers in China mainland have a greater impact and impact panel supply. The monthly display panel gains have further expanded, and the shortage of materials is expected to be improved in the second half of the year.
Last year’s panel demand rebounded, leading to a shortage of driver ICs. In the first half of this year, supply chain problems were frequent. The supply of three components PIG (polarizer, driver IC, and glass substrate) was tight, and the supply of panels was also tight.
P is the polarizer. Last year, due to the renewal of the upstream material compensation film factory, the supply was felt tight, and the South Korean polarizer manufacturer LG Chem was sold to Shanghai Shanshan Group, which delayed the previous expansion plan. In terms of the overall polarizer market, only the HMO 2.5-meter new production line has gradually increased production capacity in the first half of this year, and supply and demand are still quite tight. The SAPO 2.5-meter new line is scheduled to be put into production in the second half of the year. The tight supply and demand situation may not be relieved until the second half of the year.
I refers to IC. The supply of driver ICs this year is even worse than last year. Among them, the new 12 inch factory of the foundry Nexchip in Jiangsu was originally scheduled for mass production in the first quarter, but it is now postponed to April and May. Considering the ramp-up period for mass production of new plants, it will take some time to alleviate the gap in driver IC production capacity.
G is the glass glass substrate. NEG and AGC factories in South Korea have successively stopped work to repair the furnace, making the supply of 8.5 and 6 generation glass substrates in the first half of the year tight, and the impact will continue until the middle of this year.
In the first quarter, the demand for panels did not fall. From the supply side, in addition to the tight supply of IC and polarizers, the glass substrates have added variables. The supply chain shortage problem may not be alleviated in the second half of the year. Panel prices in the first quarter continued their upward trend since the second half of last year. Fueled by the supply chain shortage problem, it is expected that panel prices will increase in March and April, and panel prices will remain high-end in the second quarter.
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