Korea’s LCD makers rack up record sales

Earnings of liquid crystal display screen and plasma display panel manufacturers skyrocketed last year. That contrasted with the declining sales of cathode-ray tube manufacturers, indicating a sea change in the display device industry. According to an industry source, LG Philips LCD is estimated to have posted 6 trillion won ($5.12 billion) in sales and 1 trillion won in net profits last year. The company has not reported its earnings of last year yet, but if the industry source is correct, the figures are up 70 percent in sales and 250 percent in net profits compared to that of 2002. Any affiliate company of LG Group has not posted 1 trillion won in net profits yet. “We will be a cash cow of the group,” forecast an official at LG Philips LCD. Samsung Electronics sold 6 trillion won of LCD screens last year. The company recently made the LCD unit as a single business, separating it from the semiconductor unit. Samsung SDI posted 7.2 trillion won in sales and 650 billion won in net profits last year with the dramatic growth of the PDP industry, according to its earnings report yesterday. The figures were a record high. The company sold 544 billion won of plasma display panels last year, about 4.5 times that of 2002. In contrast, the company sold 4.01 trillion won of cathode-ray tubes last year, down 10 percent from that of 2002, because exports to China reduced last year. The cathode-ray tube business amounts to the largest share in the company’s sales. by Lee Hyun-sang