Flat screen maker LG.Philips LCD Co. Ltd. and two smaller Taiwan rivals should report strong quarterly earnings growth as demand for thin TV screens kept prices firm in a traditionally sluggish fourth quarter. Makers of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels are set to enjoy a booming flat-screen TV market and tight supplies in 2008, after a strong 2007 earnings rebound as companies invested less.

China will lead global LCD TV market growth, as consumers with increased buying power replace old, bulky tubes to view this summer’s Beijing Olympic Games. Prices stood firm in the fourth quarter, although they turned a bit lower towards the year-end, said Daewoo Securities analyst Jason Kang. 2008 will be the best year ever.

LG.Philips, the second-biggest maker of large-sized LCDs, is forecast to report on Monday 665.6 billion won (US$710 million) in October-December net profit, according to a Reuters poll of 10 analysts. The forecast, which would be the company’s best profit since the second quarter of 2004, marks a rebound from a 174.3 billion won loss a year earlier, when prices sagged on weak computer and TV sales.

LG.Philips, which competes with leader Samsung Electronics and Taiwan’s AU Optronics Corp., earned 524.2 billion won in the July-September third quarter. Sales are forecast to rise by more than a third to 4.12 trillion won from a year ago. The average panel price at LG.Philips was likely steady in the fourth quarter, after rising 7 percent in the third.

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