The LED industry took a hit in Feb. 2014 from fewer work days, due to Chinese Lunar New Year. Many manufacturers saw a dip in revenue from Jan. 2014. In comparison to the previous year manufacturers are seeing higher revenues due to increased demands in LED lighting. LED chip manufacturers Epistar and Epileds showed atypical growth in revenue this Feb. 2014 despite the traditional slack season, demonstrating  outstanding operational performance. 

Epistar’s consolidated revenue for Feb. 2014 had surprisingly grew 4.95 percent to NT$ 1.98 billion (US $ 65.43 million), a substantial increase of 57.48 percent compared to February last year. AlInGaP and lighting application product orders remained strong last month, while backlight demands dropped slightly. As the industry slowly moves towards peak season at the end of March, with utilization rate already at 80-90 percent, the company could see 1Q14 performance surpassing initial predictions. 

Much like Epistar, Epiled’s February revenue performance was atypical for slack season. The company’s consolidated revenue was up 7.5 percent from January to NT $116 million, a 44.59 percent jump from the same period last year. Despite fewer work days in February, lighting demands drove up revenue performance for the month. 

Not all manufacturers escaped slack season performance. LED package manufacturer Edison Opto’s consolidated revenue for February dropped 19.85 percent from January to NT $183 million. The company fared better than last February however. With lighting demand growth and increased efficiency from production expansion, February revenue soared 51.64 percent from last year. Edison Opto noted there are more factors affecting order placements, and placement period has shortened. Order visibility is around 1-1.5 months currently. 

LED manufacturer Lextar also saw a dip in February revenue due to fewer working days on top of preorders for several backlighting products in January. Revenue for February decreased 27.7 percent from January to NT $880 million, but grew 6.4 percent from February last year. Revenue is anticipated to grow in second quarter from increase in new products as OEM clients swap out old products with new models.

LiteOn Technology February revenue dipped slightly 13 percent MoM to NT $15.4 billion, growth of 16 percent from same time last year. February revenue has grown close to 10 percent from last year, due to market demands in general lighting and automotive lighting for LED components and lighting application products.