South Korea's LG Electronics Inc will buy about $1.4 billion of technology products from Taiwan in 2005, nearly tripling last year's spending, its vice chairman said on March 12. LG Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer S.S. Kim told reporters his company, which competes with Samsung Electronics Co Ltd in phones, televisions and refrigerators, would source more key electronics components from Taiwan. "Last year's purchase was about $500 million and the 1.4 billion dollars we plan for this year will be mostly for electronics components, including semiconductors and LCD panels," said Kim, who was in Taipei to inspect LG's business on the island.
Kim said the company was looking for Taiwan suppliers to assemble liquid crystal display (LCD) televisions for LG, but he declined to identify potential partners.
The firm mainly sells advanced consumer products, such as flat-screen plasma TVs and mobile phones, under its own brand in Taiwan, Kim said.
Operations in Taiwan make up only 1 percent of LG's total revenue. Kim said LG expects global sales of $41 billion in 2005, up about a third from 2004, and LG aims to become one of the world's top three consumer product makers by 2010.
LG Electronics, the world's fifth-largest cellphone maker, swung to a profit in the fourth quarter from a year-ago loss on record sales of mobile phones, but earnings halved from the previous quarter on tumbling screen prices.
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