SEOUL, April 23 (Xinhua) -- LG Display, South Korea's display panel giant, posted an operating loss in the first quarter due to low seasonality and production disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, the company said Thursday.
The flatscreen maker recorded an operating loss of 361.9 billion won (294.4 million U.S. dollars) during the January-March quarter, growing from a loss of 132 billion won (107.4 million U.S. dollars) tallied a year earlier.
Net loss amounted to 199 billion won (161.9 million U.S. dollars) in the first quarter, compared with the net loss of 63 billion won (51.3 million U.S. dollars) a year earlier.
Revenue plummeted 20 percent over the year to 4.7 trillion won (3.8 billion U.S. dollars) in the quarter.
It was driven by low seasonality that led to a reduction in the sale of products with high average sales price (ASP) per square meter, such as plastic organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) products.
Production setback from the COVID-19 outbreak and the reduced production of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels contributed to the worsened earnings.
The negative effects were offset by a favorable foreign exchange rate, an increase in LCD TV panel prices and efforts to minimize overall costs including material costs, the company said.
"We expect volatility in demand to increase down the road, as industry sectors are impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. The difficult situation will inevitably linger, although it is expected that demand in IT products will grow due to stay-at-home orders and consequent surge in online activities," said Suh Dong-hee, senior vice president of LG Display. Enditem
