For the first time in four years, demand for flat panel displays grew double digits at 10,5%, year over year, to 221-million square meters in 2018, according to business information provider IHS Markit.
“Although uncertainties about the global economy grew in the second half of 2018, panel purchasing for the year-end hot season was better than expected,” says Ricky Park, director of display research at IHS Markit. “Lower prices fed a sharp increase in panel demand for TVs, smartphones and desktop monitors.”
Demand for OLED TV panels increased by 65,6%, year over year, reaching 3-million square meters in 2018. LCD TV panel demand rose 10,7% to 154-million square meters during the same period. “Growing popularity of 60-inch and larger TV panels contributed to the growth in overall TV panel area demand,” Park says.
Panel demand for desktop monitors increased by 11,9% in 2018, led by the US market. “As the gaming market has grown, a preference for larger monitors also raised demand,” Park said. Demand for 25-inch and larger monitor panels jumped 39% in 2018 compared to a year ago.
As the smartphone market saturated, smartphone panel demand declined to 1,6-billion units in 2018 from 1,7-billion units in 2017. However, in terms of area, demand grew 6,1% in 2018, as a large number of smartphones applied full-screen panels.
IHS Markit forecasts that the flat panel area demand for 2019, will grow 5,1%, slower than it did in 2018. The economic forecast by IHS Markit has recently been revised downward, which will partially contribute to slower growth in end-market demand.