Dec 10 2009
Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) today will announce that continued strength in worldwide LCD television sales has led to an increase in the company’s fourth-quarter glass substrate volume expectations, and an improved outlook on 2010 glass market growth.
These improved estimates will be provided by Corning Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer James B. Flaws in remarks to be delivered at the Barclays Capital Global Technology Conference in San Francisco.
Flaws will tell investors that “lights are green in display,” noting that worldwide LCD TV year-over-year October sales increased 45%, the second-highest monthly growth rate of the year. He will point out that the October sales strength occurred in all major TV markets, with LCD TV unit sales up 28% in the U.S., 20% in Europe, 115% in China, and 73% in Japan. “In the U.S., LCD TV sales remained strong throughout all of November, including the week of Black Friday,” Flaws will say. The retail data is the result of reports from a variety of independent consumer market research organizations (NPD, GFK, BCN, and CMM) and the company’s internal analysis.
“As a result,” Flaws will say, “panel makers continue to run at high utilization rates in the fourth quarter and glass supply is very tight. We expect glass demand to remain this way through the remainder of the quarter. Therefore, we are raising our fourth-quarter volume estimates to flat to up slightly.” Previously the company said fourth-quarter volume could be flat to down slightly. Estimates include both Corning’s wholly owned business and Samsung Corning Precision Glass Co., Ltd., Corning’s equity affiliate in Korea. “Fourth-quarter demand is strong enough that if we could produce more glass, we would be able to sell it,” he will remark.
Flaws will add that Corning now anticipates the worldwide glass market will be closer to 2.4 billion square feet this year, an improvement from earlier estimates of 2.3 billion square feet. He will point out that Corning now believes global LCD TV sales will exceed 132 million, up from the previous expectation of 129 million sets.
Regarding other Corning businesses, he will say that the Telecommunications segment remains on track with the company’s previous guidance of a 10% to 15% sequential decline as the industry continues experiencing global weakness, except in China. The Environmental Technologies segment is seeing better-than-expected sales strength in both automotive and diesel products. Automotive demand appears to be fueled by an industry-wide need to replenish inventory in the supply chain, and diesel demand is the result of sales in advance of more stringent 2010 heavy-duty engine emissions regulations. This has led Corning to improve its expectation of fourth-quarter segment sales to be flat sequentially versus the previous down 10% to 15%.
2010 Market Strength
“The strength of the fourth quarter suggests that the 2010 LCD glass market could be larger than what we previously thought. If the supply chain exits this year at healthy levels and retail sales continue strong, the normal seasonal decline the glass industry usually experiences in the first quarter may be less than anticipated,” he will add. “Our early modeling suggests that 2010 worldwide LCD glass demand could be between 2.7 billion and 2.8 billion square feet.” Flaws also will say the company believes its Display Technologies segment’s gross margin has the potential to expand in 2010 from its current levels.
Looking forward, Flaws will tell investors, “There is an opportunity for further LCD glass volume growth over the next several years. LCD television growth will be driven by penetration into the embedded TV base, an increase in the number of sets per home and a shorter replacement cycle.” He will point out that LCD TVs represent only 19% of the 2.1 billion installed base.
Flaws will comment that the company expects spending across the Telecommunications industry to be lower next year, as the industry is typically one of the last to recover from economic downturns. In its Environmental Technologies segment, automotive emissions control product sales are expected to grow from their current depressed levels. He will add that Corning remains confident that the diesel business could reach $500 million in sales within the next few years as emissions regulations take hold in several countries.
In other businesses, he will explain that the Specialty Materials segment has a significant growth opportunity with its Gorilla™ glass, a scratch-resistant cover glass for portable display devices. “The response to Gorilla has been tremendous. The glass is already used in more than 50 devices today and is included in the design of 50 additional products planned to be launched in the future. We believe Gorilla glass has the potential to be a $300 million business in the next several years …with the potential to be much larger,” he will say.
The company is also making investments in developing glass for thin-film solar panels; a second generation of its Epic® System for high-throughput, label-free drug discovery; silicon-on-glass substrate technology for OLED mobile displays; commercial production of green lasers for microprojectors; and Advanced-Flow™ glass reactors for chemical production.
“Corning is a growth company and a market leader in each of our major product areas, with an innovation pipeline that is producing promising technologies with the potential to deliver significant revenues over the next decade,” Flaws will conclude.