(Yicai Global) May 6 -- Though the display shipments of mainland China's panel makers were half of the world's total for the first time in the first quarter.

The shipments of mainland China's panel makers made up 50.1 percent of the world's total in the first quarter, Li Yaqin, general manager of Beijing-based tech research firm SigmaIntell Consulting, told Yicai Global.

China's panel makers shipped 33.9 percent of the world's 60-inch or larger LCD TV panels in the first quarter, London-based market research firm IHS Markit said on May 1. This means that their market share gained nearly 10 times from 3.6 percent in the first quarter of last year. In contrast, Korean producers' share fell to 45.1 percent from 54.8 percent in the same period.

The quarterly reports of domestic listed panel firms show that their revenues grew while profits dipped due to falling prices.

Beijing-based Boe Technology Group earned revenue of about CNY26.5 billion (USD3.9 billion) in the first quarter, growing 22.7 percent annually, and net profit attributable to shareholders was CNY1.05 billion, a 47.9 percent drop from the same period last year.

Shenzhen-headquartered Tianma Microelectronics achieved business income of CNY6.9 billion in the first quarter, up 5.46 percent on a yearly basis, and its net profit attributable to shareholders reached CNY289 million, down 35.4 percent from last year.

The business revenue of Beijing-based Visionox Technology in the first quarter was CNY200 million, an about rise of about 19 times, while its net loss attributable to shareholders reached CNY388 million, an annual fall of about twofold.

The rapid emergence of display production capacity in the Chinese mainland and slowing growth in market demand have produced a glut on the market, noted Bian Zheng, a senior analyst at Beijing-based All View Consulting.

his has led to steadily declining prices, so the panel makers' net profit is suffering, and this situation is unlikely to ease in the short term, he added.

Editor: Xu Wei, Ben Armour