Acme Electronics Remains Wary on The Outlook for Sapphire Ingots Citing Low Pricing

Despite a pick-up in orders, Acme Electronics remains wary on the outlook for sapphire ingots citing low pricing that has not recovered. Subsidiary USI Optronics, a maker of sapphire ingots, has seen the visibility of orders shorten to about one month, Acme said. Despite optimism on the 2012 market for LED backlit TVs, demand for sapphire ingots used to manufacture sapphire wafers for LEDs has not rebounded substantially, Acme indicated. Prices for sapphire ingots remain similar to the low levels reached in the fourth quarter, reflecting real demand has not yet returned, Acme pointed out. Downstream clients tend to place short lead time orders instead of regular ones given uncertain market outlook, Acme stated. However, subsidiary USI Optronics has recently expanded its worldwide customer base, with new orders coming from companies based in Japan, South Korea and North America, according to Acme. Industry sources expect monthly revenues at USI Optronics to be between NT$42 million (US$1.4 million) and NT$45 million during the first quarter. As for its core ferrite core business, revenues slid 13.3% sequentially to NT$158 million in January due to fewer working days, Acme said. Source: www.digitimes.com