Samsung Electronics, the world's top maker of memory chips and LCD screens, reported on Friday its best ever quarterly net profit on a resurgent memory sector and forecast a strong 2010.

Sharp, Japan's largest maker of liquid-crystal displays, posted a second straight half-year loss because of declining sales of LCD panels. The net loss was 17.7 billion yen (US$196 million) in the six months ended September 30, compared with a profit of 28 billion yen a year earlier.

Sony narrowed its full-year loss forecast, as cost reductions more than offset a stronger yen and lower sales of televisions and cameras. The net loss will probably be 95 billion yen (US$1 billion) in the year ending March 31, compared with an earlier projection for a 120 billion yen loss.

The influential lobby group Consumer Electronics Assn. is fighting what appears to be a losing battle to dissuade California regulators from passing the nation's first ban on energy-hungry big-screen televisions.

The current industry shortage of LCD panels could continue through the middle of next year, the head of a unit at Japan's Sharp said, in a potential move to shore up investor confidence in panel makers.

The cell chip in Toshiba's TV is the same as the one in Sony's PS3.

LG Electronics, the world's second-biggest maker of LCD televisions, said the company aims to increase shipments by about 47 percent next year, driven by demand from emerging markets.

Acer will expand into televisions and electronic books within five years as the PC industry slows, founder Stan Shih has said.