Corning Boosts Forecast For Q1 Glass Volume

Corning (GLW) this morning raised its guidance on Q1 glass volume. The company now says total glass produced in the first quarter could be flat to down 5% sequentially, rather than the 20%-25% decline Corning had previously forecast. “Encouraging data from panel makers and LCD television retail sales indicate that the display supply chain is performing as predicted,” the company said in a statement. “As a result, the company has been experiencing increasing glass orders over the past several weeks” at both its wholly owned operations and at its Samsung Corning Precision Glass joint venture. Corning notes that according to NPD Group , retail sales of LCD TVs in February were up 39% in units from a year ago. For the full year, the company continues to forecast worldwide LCD TV unit growth of 9%. Corning said utilization rates at the Taiwanese panel makers have improved from about 20% in December to over 40% in February; in Korea, utilization rates have improved from ... (link)