LED driver The big chip companies accumulated gross margin of 34.2% in the first quarter of this year, which was the best since the eighth quarter. The company also released its own chip that has been successfully designed into Samsung. monitor In the second quarter, it is expected that the revenue will increase by 20% in the second quarter. As for the market-oriented Micro LED, although there has been gradual progress, it is not expected to have until the second half of 2019. display As for the automotive industry, the OE market is the main focus. It has already introduced headlights and taillights, but it takes time to make significant contributions.
Looking back at the performance of the first quarter of this year, the accumulation analysis showed that the first quarter of this year performed very well. The gross profit rate in the first quarter was 34.2%, which was better than 29.5% in the fourth quarter of last year and 30.2% in the same period of last year, mainly due to the niche product mix. , The basic price strategy, as well as customer upgrades in the United States, South Korea, Japan, etc., boosted offshore sales.
Chen Qikai, General Manager of Accumulation, disclosed that in the first quarter of this year, customers from non-mainland regions such as South Korea, the United States and Japan, revenue grew by 40% compared to the same period of last year. In particular, their own LED driver chips have been successfully designed into Samsung's movie monitors. In addition, in response to the Olympic Games to be held in Japan in 2020, several Japanese customers have important cases underway, including Panasonic. It is expected that there will be some revenue contribution this year.
Accumulation of NT$684 million in revenue in the first quarter of this year (same below), quarterly decrease of 4.3%, cost portion, 175 million yuan in the first quarter, slightly lower than the 178 million yuan in the fourth quarter of last year, 2.1% decrease in the quarter, The net profit for the quarter was 39.715 million yuan. The net profit for the fourth quarter of last year was 41.752 million yuan. The net profit for the first quarter was 1.29 yuan. The net profit for the fourth quarter of last year was 1.31 yuan. The accumulation also explained that the tax amounted to 12 million yuan in the first quarter of this year. Yuan, mainly because the parent company of the mainland company was relocated from Brunei to Samoa. This is a company that makes money. Taiwan is subject to taxation.
Yang Lichang, chairman of Micro LED and Mini LED in the market, expressed his belief that Micro LED will be the mainstream technology for next-generation displays, and will strive to become a supplier of Micro LED integration solutions. It is expected that Mini LED display products will be available in the second half of this year. There will also be miniaturized LED products that have been introduced into the backlighting of mobile phones and TVs. The Mini LED displays and mobile phones and other backlights will begin to generate revenue in the first half of 2019. As for the Micro LED segment, It is expected that monitor products will be available in the second half of 2019, and Micro LED will have to contribute to the accumulation of revenue. I am afraid that it will have to wait until 2020.
As for the other focus of the market, namely the automotive market segment, accumulating in the automotive lighting market, mainly in the OE market, has already imported the headlights and taillights, and has also obtained AC Q100 certification, but there must be substantial revenue. Contributing also takes time. It only accumulates in the layout of the auto market. It will have important implications for the future long-term development.
Looking forward this year, Chen Qikai mentioned that he is optimistic about the second quarter and is optimistic about the outlook for the whole year. As for Yang Lichang, based on the evolution of the small-pitch display specification and the continuous improvement of Micro LED penetration rate, it will accumulate for the next three years. Revenue is expected to grow substantially. The industry estimates that the accumulation of revenue in the first half of this year is expected to reach between RMB 1.4 billion and RMB 1.55 billion. The revenue for the second quarter will be approximately RMB 716 million to RMB 866 million, which is in line with the first quarter of this year. In comparison, the revenue for the quarter increased by 4.7% to 26.6%, but the quarterly revenue growth rate for the second quarter is expected to fall to 20%. As for the second quarter, the gross margin can still stay above the 30% mark.
