Specialty glass maker Corning said recently that it was considering permanent plant closures & additional job cuts as US sales of LCD TVs rose less than expected Nov/08. Corning, the largest maker of glass for LCD TVs & computers, also said in a statement that it was feeling pressure for pricing relief from its customers & expected to cut glass prices in 1Q/09. The company made the comments ahead of a 10 Dec/08 presentation by its CFO, James Flaws, at a Barclays technology conference. "The current end-market weakness, combined with the inventory correction, has resulted in a substantial mismatch between glass capacity & demand by our customers", Mr. Flaws was due to tell the conference, according to Corning. The company said it expected to reduce glass prices at a higher rate in 1Q, but did not give specifics. Corning's weak outlook follows bad news from Samsung Electronics, which lowered its sales and profit targets, and Sony Corp which said it would cut jobs and withdraw from unprofitable businesses under a restructuring plan. Shrinking US consumer demand has severely hurt LCD TV makers and consumer electronics retailers, and forced most industry players to revise expectations for the holiday shopping season.
