SHARP OPENS SECOND LCD FAB IN MEXICO TO MEET NORTH AMERICAN DEMAND

Sharp Corporation held an opening ceremony on October 15 for a new second plant inside the compound of Sharp Electr?ica Mexico S.A. de C.V. (SEMEX), Sharp's production base in Mexico for liquid-crystal-display (LCD) modules and LCD TVs destined for the North American market.

The Mexico Plant, located in the Mexican state of Baja California, started operation in 1997 as a color cathode-ray-tube (CRT) TV manufacturing plant and began production of LCD TVs in 2003. Sharp said it constructed its newest plant to meet the burgeoning demand for LCD TVs in the North American market, and has begun the integrated production of LCD TVs - from manufacture of LCD modules to assembly of LCD TVs - for the first time in North America. The start of operations at Plant No. 2 gives Sharp the ability to produce more LCD TVs and to supply them to the market in a timely manner.

Sharp expects demand for LCD TVs in North America to reach 23 million units in fiscal 2007, an increase of 1.5 times over the previous fiscal year. Moreover, with the spread of digital HDTV broadcasts, the company said it expects demand for large-screen full-HD models to expand even further.