Sakai Display Products Corp. in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture
18:07 JST, May 14, 2024
Sharp Corp. announced Tuesday that it will halt operations at an LCD television factory in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, sources said. The company is looking to boost profits by shrinking its sluggish liquid crystal display (LCD) business.
The factory is run by its subsidiary, Sakai Display Products Corp. (SDP). There will be no more production of LCD TV screens in Japan once operations at the factory cease.
The specific time at which the factory will be closed will be determined after consultation with suppliers. Sharp is expected to consider selling SDP to domestic or foreign companies.
Sharp reported a loss of ¥260.8 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, due to poor performance of its LCD business. The company had planned to recover and post an eventual profit of ¥10 billion for the year ending March 31, 2024, but suffered from a slump not only in LCDs for TVs, but also in small and medium LCD panels for smartphones and computers.
Sharp announced a loss of ¥149.9 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31.
In 2009, Sharp expanded its business into LCD TV business and invested ¥430 billion in launching SDP to achieve further growth. However, as competition with Chinese and South Korean companies increased, Sharp experienced a decline in profitability.
Sharp gradually sold its stake in SDP in preparation for the sale as the subsidiary had become a liability, but changed its policy and turned SDP into a wholly owned company in 2022, in line with the intention of its parent company Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. .
