Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) has reported net income of NT$267 million (US$8.23 million) for the first three quarters of this year, compared to net losses of NT$213 million for the same period of 2006.
ECS shipped 18.98 million motherboards for the first three quarters of this year, up 6.94% on year, according to the company. The company's motherboard shipments are expected to stay flat or grow slightly in the fourth quarter. The company's notebook shipments for 2007 will reach three million units, driven by the smooth consolidation of its acquisition of Uniwill Computer in December 2006, the company added.
However, the funding needed for the Uniwill acquisition and inventory adjustments prevented ECS from having the significant profit growth its competitors Micro-Star International (MSI), Gigabyte Technology, and Asustek Computer saw in the first three quarters of this year, industry sources commented.
But while the motherboard market growth is slowing, ECS' notebook line will drive the company's revenues in 2008, the sources said, adding ECS is aggressively vying for Intel's orders for Classmate PCs.
ECS posted losses of NT$1.32 billion for 2006 because of fierce competition in the motherboard industry. But the company said it expects to turn around in 2007 because of cost-down efforts and OEM/ODM orders for desktop and notebook PCs.
Article translated by Rodney Chan and edited by Michael McManus
