Taiwan's leading flexible PCB maker Zhen Ding Technology and flexible antenna board supplier Flexium Interconnect have kicked off peak-season shipments as scheduled for new iPhones and other Apple devices, with their July revenues rising significantly as a result, according to industry sources.

Zhen Ding's July revenues expanded 14.3% on year to NT$11.651 billion (US$416.107 million), and Flexium's gained 14.4% on year reaching NT$2.785 billion. Both makers are expected to see significant on-year increases in third-quarter revenues due partly to lower comparison bases of a year earlier resulting from deferred launch of new iPhones in 2020, the sources said.

Both FPCB makers' revenue performances hinge highly on their shipments to Apple, particularly associated with the extent of PCB spec upgrades for new iOS devices, how many orders they can land for new Apple products, and whether they can get higher shares of shipments for existing product lines, the sources said.

PCB specs for new Apple devices including iPhones will not be significantly changed, except for antenna modules redesigned for new mmWave iPhones and miniLED backlit boards incorporated into MacBook series, the sources said. Antenna boards now boast the highest unit prices in the FPCB segment and miniLED backlight boards also offer good profitability.

The sources stressed that Zhen Ding is expected to log much better revenue and profit gains than other PCB peers in the ongoing peak season, given that it now commands 40-50% of high-frequency antenna board shipments for new iPhones, offers 25% of SLP (substrate-like PCB) mainboard supply for the devices, and is also among major suppliers of miniLED backlight boards for MacBook series.

Flexium also has abundant orders in hand from Apple, including those for new Airpods devices, antenna modules for existing MacBook, iPad and Apple Watch series, and new orders for LCP (liquid crystal polymer) antenna boards for new iPhones, allowing it to embrace a strong second-half 2021, the sources said.

By DIGITIMES