LCD TVs Help Push Sharp Sales, Profits Up

Strong demand for flat-panel televisions, mobile phones and imaging chips helped Sharp achieve a 23 percent jump in net profits during the April-to-June quarter, the company said Tuesday.

Sharp reported a net profit of 23.9 billion yen (US$205 million) on the back of 13 percent better sales of 693.7 billion yen for the period, which is the Osaka company’s fiscal first quarter.

Consumer electronics and information equipment sales, which make just under two-thirds of Sharp’s sales, rose 13 percent to 452.6 billion yen. The biggest increase in this sector was from Sharp’s audio-visual products business. That includes liquid crystal display (LCD) televisions—an area in which Sharp is a major player. In addition to cell phones, Sharp also saw strong demand for home appliances, including steam ovens, but sales of air conditioners and computers fell.

Its electronic components business was buoyed by higher sales for image sensors of the type used in digital still cameras, solar cells and LCD panels. In addition to selling its own brand televisions, Sharp sells panels to other companies for use in their TV sets.

This LCD panel business proved to be Sharp’s most profitable and was worth 40 percent of the quarter’s operating profit of 40.4 billion yen. The LCD TV business was second most profitable among Sharp’s operations, the company said.

Sharp left its forecast for the full year unchanged, expecting a net profit of 100 billion yen on sales of 3 trillion yen.

-Martyn Williams, IDG News Service (Tokyo Bureau)

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