[Digital Times, Kim Eun] Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, LG Display and other semiconductor and display manufacturers have been expanding investment in facility, and Korean companies manufacturing equipment for related production lines are continuing to perform well. Major equipment makers such as Jusung Engineering and AP Systems are expected to reveal record high earnings this year and expect earnings to improve next year.

According to industry sources on September 17, domestic semiconductor and display equipment makers have recorded record-high earnings in the first half of the year, and both sales and operating profit should grow more than double-digit in the second half. This is the result of domestic semiconductor and display makers` investment in production facilities for DRAM, NAND flash, and flexible OLED (organic light emitting diode).

Samsung Electronics revealed that it will spend USD 7 billion over three years to invest in NAND flash memory expansion at its Chinese plant in Xian. SK Hynix also increased its investment to KRW 9.6 trillion.

Samsung Display plans to invest more than KRW 10 trillion this year to expand flexible OLED production, and LG Display will invest KRW 7.8 trillion in large-scale and small-sized organic light emitting diode (OLED) production facilities by 2019.

SFA, the largest related equipment maker in Korea, has surpassed KRW 1 trillion in sales for the first half of this year and is expected to record record-high earnings after its establishment this year. The company is focusing on display and semiconductor automation equipment (fab automation), and is increasing its sales based on increasing sales to overseas clients and winning orders for module evaporators.

Wonik IPS posted an operating profit of KRW 46.8 billion, an increase of 1153.39% compared to the same period last year, according to financial information company. In the second half of the year, sales of KRW 264.1 billion and operating profit of KRW 50.7 billion were expected to increase by 37% and 102%, respectively, from the second half of last year. Currently, plasma chemical deposition equipment (PE CVD) used in semiconductor production processes is supplied to Samsung Electronics` Pyeongtaek plant, and deposition equipment for non-memory semiconductor production lines is expected to contribute to sales in the second half of this year.

Meanwhile, Jusung Engineering also recorded sales of KRW 165.3 billion and operating profit of KRW 28.9 billion in the second half, following the supply of semiconductor atomic layer deposition equipment (ALD) and PE CVD equipment for LCDs (LCDs) to SK Hynix and LG Display It is expected to generate sales and operating profit of KRW 53 billion. This is an increase of 20.5 % and 40.6 %, respectively. Operating profit was the highest ever since its establishment in 1995.

Display equipment maker AP system exclusively supplies flexible OLED core equipment to Samsung Display. Samsung Display is expected to supply equipment for the iPhone in the future, so the equipment supply is expected to increase until next year.

The AP system is expected to record sales of 887.6 billion won and operating profit of KRW 76.5 billion, up 48% and 136% from the previous year, respectively, according to Shinhan Financial Investment & Securities.

An industry expert said, "We expect orders for related equipment such as semiconductor production equipment to grow in earnest from quarter 4 to quarter 1," and "domestic equipment makers are expected to record better results next year."

By Kim Eun silverkim@


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