Global flat panel display (FPD) market revenue is expected to shrink by 6 percent year over year in 2016 to $120 billion. While revenue has been declining for some time, this year it will reach its lowest level since 2012, according to IHS Inc. (NYSE:IHS), the leading global source of critical information and insight.
“The industry has begun to question whether the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil will spur panel demand, as Brazil's domestic situation and economy are worsening,” said Ricky Park, director of large display research for IHS Technology.
“The prolonged decline in oil prices and the resulting economic downturn in oil-producing countries, together with the economic slowdown in emerging markets, continue to adversely affect display demand. There is also growing concern about China's sluggish domestic market, and the free fall in panel prices that began last year is also hampering market growth.”
Due to the panel oversupply situation, panel prices declined more rapidly in the second half of 2015 than during any other year since 2008. In December of 2015, for example, the average price for open-cell 32-inch liquid crystal displays (LCDs) tumbled nearly 41 percent since the previous year.
According to the IHS Display Long-term Demand Forecast Tracker, stronger demand for large ultra-high definition (UHD) and 8K panels could slow declining average selling prices. Overall global display demand could also pick up after 2016, if the global economy improves as expected. Furthermore, as the demand for large TV panels rises, FPD shipment area is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5 percent, from 2015 to 2020.
