Seoul, Korea – LG Display reported a reversal in the fiscal
third quarter with a major net loss and lower sales.
The company’s net loss for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 688
billion won compared with net income of 224 billion won in the third quarter of
2010.
Sales in the third quarter of 2011 decreased by 6 percent
compared with 6,698 billion won in the third quarter of 2010.
Operating loss in the third quarter of 2011 was 492 billion
won. This compares with an operating profit of 182 billion won in the third
quarter of 2010.
Due to sharp rise in the exchange rate at the end of the
quarter, net foreign exchange loss associated with factors such as customer
advances and liabilities denominated in foreign currency, deepened the deficit
in the income statement, LG Display said. “However, due to low portion of these
liabilities nearing their maturity date for the next three months, it is highly
likely that the net foreign exchange loss can be reverted into the net foreign
exchange gain if we factored in the projected foreign exchange movement,” the
company said.
“LG Display has been building differentiated competencies to
gain market share, cost competitiveness and product superiority. As a result,
we were able to maintain our competitive position despite the challenges in the
economy such as the global recession. It is regretful that there was an
increased deficit in the income statement due to exchange rate rise at the end
of the quarter which translated to foreign exchange losses,” noted Young Soo
Kwon, CEO of LG Display, in a statement.
LG Display shipped a total of 8.10 million square meters of
net display area in the third quarter of 2011, an increase of 9 percent quarter
on quarter.
TFT-LCD panels for TVs, monitors, notebook PCs, smartbooks
and mobile applications accounted for 47, 19, 14, 11 and 9 percent,
respectively, on a revenue basis in the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, “LG Display expects total display
shipments to increase by a low single digit percentage in the fourth quarter
compared to the third quarter. Also, further decline in panel prices is
expected to be limited.” said James Jeong, CFO of LG Display. “Although
uncertainty over market demand is expected to persist in the fourth quarter LG
Display will expand the portion of its premium products based on differentiated
technology. Meanwhile, we will continue aggressive cost reduction efforts and
work under tighter cash flow management to improve profitability while
fostering future growth.”
