The prices of LCD TVs in China won't drop sharply during the National Day holiday because a robust demand has slowed price reductions of LCD panels, industry officials said during a forum yesterday in Shanghai.

But an oversupply is expected to appear again in the LCD (liquid crystal display) panel industry in the first quarter of 2010, which will push the price down further, industry officials said during the DisplaySearch China FPD Conference 2009.

"Firms will launch campaigns and promotions but they probably won't engage in a price war," said Zhang Bing, an analyst at DisplaySearch, a United States-based consulting firm.

In the third quarter, a 32-inch LCD HD (high definition) panel is expected to cost US$424 on average, a drop of US$17 from the second quarter. The price will drop by another US$8 in the fourth quarter, according to DisplaySearch.

Comparatively, the price of a 32-inch normal LCD panel tumbled US$25 in the third quarter.

The panel is the key component of a LCD TV and it accounts for 70 percent or above of the total cost, experts said.

The booming demand and decreased capacity, due to a financial crisis, have made the LCD panel price relatively stable, industry officials said during the forum.

In 2009, China's LCD TV sales are expected to hit 22 million units, a jump of 70 percent year on year, according to Corning, the world's biggest glass provider for LCD panels.

In past years, TV makers sometimes reduced LCD TV prices by 20 or even 30 percent to gain a bigger market share during holidays like National Day in October and Labor Day in May.

(Shanghai Daily September 4, 2009)