Oled factories, production capacities below 60% in the first half of 2023

According to Omdia, the utilization rate of the entire factories of display manufacturers around the world, i.e. those of liquid crystal panels (LCDs) added to those of organic light-emitting diode panels ( Oled), intended for the TV, smartphone, tablet, IT and mobile markets, etc. should not exceed 74% in the second quarter of 2023.

Gradual resumption of LCD panel production While this figure may appear disappointing, it nevertheless represents an increase of 8% compared to the rate observed, 66%, in the first quarter. This shows the difficulties endured by screen manufacturers since the second quarter of 2022 when the demand for televisions in the world collapsed following the war in Ukraine and the associated price increase.

Omdia indicates that the situation is however different for LCD and OLED panels. Thus, LCD screen manufacturers, mainly in China, have relaunched their production rate with the objective of an 80% utilization rate of their production lines by the end of the first half. This revival is carried out gradually by the Chinese players in order to maintain the unit price of the panels. Any oversupply of panels would irremediably lead to a further drop in prices.

Very difficult first half of 2023 for OLED panel manufacturers For their part, the Oled factories are not there yet. Orders from the main OLED panel customers remain weak. Omdia predicts that the smartphone market will remain difficult throughout the first half of 2023 and that manufacturers of large slabs, and therefore TV panels, would face a lasting slowdown in consumer demand. Thus, the drop in orders from companies such as LG Electronics, Panasonic, Philips, Samsung Electronics and Sony would affect the utilization rate of 8.5 generation Oled factories (mainly LG Display) which should remain below 60% until 'at the end of the first semester, at least.