120 million Handsets to be Shipped from Taiwan in 2008

Both the China Economic News (CENS) and Digitimes report Taiwanese handset makers will ship 120 million units this year. CENS says:

With Apple Inc. focusing on operation in the global handset market, Taiwan is expected to ship some 120 million handsets worth US$15 billon worldwide this year, estimated by Taiwan`s government-funded MIC (Market Intelligence Center).

MIC projected Taiwan`s shipment of smartphones to sharply double to 13.49 million and 14.8 million units in the third quarter and fourth quarter of this year, respectively, from a year earlier, because Apple has placed OEM (original equipment manufacturer) orders with Taiwan`s Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., while Taiwan High Tech Computer Corp. (HTC) has seen its sales of own branded smartphones keep growing.

And according to Digitimes:

With Nokia, LG Electronics and Sony Ericsson continuing to increase their handset outsourcing, and expanding shipment volumes of High Tech Computer's (HTC's) Touch Diamond, Taiwan's handset shipments are expected to grow 9-10% on quarter during the final two quarters of 2008, bringing total shipments for the year to 120 million units, up 10.7% from a year earlier.

Taiwan's handset sector saw shipments continue to drop 4.4% sequentially to 27.37 million units in the second quarter of 2008 following a 14.3% sequential decline in the first quarter as orders from Motorola remained weak, and those from clients in emerging markets were rather limited due to the transition to new models. However, second-quarter shipments represented an increase of 30.7% from a year earlier due to new orders from India's Reliance Communications and China's Hwawei Technologies.

The proportion of various categories of handsets shipped by Taiwan makers in the second quarter was similar to that seen in the first quarter, although a decrease in orders for entry-level models from Motorola, an increase in orders from LG, and more orders for smartphones were recorded.

Both articles have argued Motorola's continued non-performance will see demand for low end, entry level handsets decrease. CENS also observed that cheap generic handset models made by handset manufacturers in China and India and sold into emerging African and Latin American markets may erode the global market share of the Taiwanese manufacturers. For high-end models however, my money is stil on the Taiwanese firms to continue to beat out competitors from other countries.

Digitimes:Taiwan handset shipments to grow 9-10% on quarter in 2H08
CENS: Taiwan Poised to Ship 120 M. Handsets This Year