LG Display reverses into loss as inflation ends COVID-fuelled demand surge

SEOUL: South Korean display panel maker LG Display Co said on Wednesday it swung to a second-quarter loss from a profit a year earlier, as inflation and interest rate hikes undercut demand for panels used in TVs and gadgets.

The operating loss at the Apple Inc supplier was 488 billion won ($371 million) for the April-June quarter, compared with a profit of 701 billion won in the same period last year. Business had been boosted for several quarters by strong home entertainment demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The quarterly operating loss, the first since the second quarter of 2020, was steeper than an average forecast of a 343 billion won loss from 12 analysts polled by Refinitiv SmartEstimate.