Lower priced flat-screen TVs drive US MMA market

26 November 2007 18:59  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS news)--Downstream methyl methacrylate (MMA) markets picked up large gains last week as US consumers bought more flat-screen televisions, which are considerably cheaper this year, an analyst said on Monday.

US-based research firm ShopperTrak said it found that customers were lured to stores largely by sales specials on televisions, and that significantly discounted items had mostly sold out by noon on “Black Friday”, the day after the Thanksgiving holiday and the beginning of the US Christmas shopping season.

According to the statistics, which measure sales at mall-based stores, overall sales reached nearly $9bn (€6bn), a 6% jump from the same day last year.

Flat-panel displays (FPD), which include laptops, televisions and digital cameras, are large downstream consumers of MMA. As flat-screen televisions  have become more affordable, demand for MMA has jumped, a producer said.

Prices for flat-screen televisions, which at one time topped $10,000, have dropped considerably.  The cost of a flat screen is 30% lower this holiday season than it was just last year, according to Consumer Reports.

The cost of flat screens was down due to additional FPD production overseas, an MMA producer said, adding that new capacities are announced all the time.

Samsung Electronics said recently it would invest about $2.2bn to increase production of flat-screen panels to meet rising demand for large flat-screen televisions, according to an Associated Press report.

But strong demand from the FPD producers has kept raw material MMA prices firm at just over $1/lb in the US, according to global chemical market intelligence service ICIS pricing.

($1.00 = €0.67)

By: Heather McGuire Doyle
+1 713 525 2653

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