Flat TVs Boost LCD Demand

Electronics maker may increase production of the panels to meet growing demand for flat-screen TVs.

Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp. said Monday it may boost the capacity of a new plant, due to go on line from January, that will make liquid crystal panels in order to meet growing demand for large flat-panel TVs.

“Given the very strong growth in demand for flat panels used in TVs, we’re looking at boosting capacity of our Kameyama facility sometime in 2004,” said spokesman Yukiyasu Uno.

Uno declined to comment on a report in the Nihon Keizai business daily that Sharp would invest about ¥90 billion ($840 million) to triple the production capacity of large liquid crystal panels at the plant in Mie prefecture, western Japan.

Sharp is the world’s largest maker of liquid crystal display (LCD) televisions, but faces growing competition from aggressive Asian rivals like South Korea’s Samsung Electronics.

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Source: Reuters