"Annual TV Shipments to Decline Due to U.S. Tariffs... Possible Price Hikes in Second Half"

Due to the impact of U.S. tariff policies, global TV shipments are expected to increase in the first half of this year but decrease in the second half, resulting in a slight year-on-year decline overall.

Visitors are seen exploring AI TV products at Samsung Electronics' new product launch event 'Unbox & Discover 2025' held on the 7th of last month at Samsung Gangnam in Seocho-gu. Photo by Yonhap News

According to market research firm TrendForce on May 1, global TV shipments this year are projected to reach 196.44 million units, a 0.7% decrease compared to last year.

TV shipments in the first quarter remained robust despite it being a traditional off-season, reaching 45.59 million units. This represents a 6.1% increase compared to the first quarter of last year.

Retail inventories for four brands?Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, TCL, and Hisense?in the United States increased by an average of three to four weeks. TrendForce explained, "These four brands increased shipments to North America in anticipation of tariffs on Mexico-made products rising to as much as 25% at the end of last year. However, following the announcement in April that products manufactured in Mexico and compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) would remain exempt from tariffs, the burden on TV manufacturers with factories in Mexico has eased."

Due to the effect of tariff deferrals and efforts to stockpile inventory in advance, TV shipments in the first half of the year are expected to increase by 3.8% to reach 94.18 million units.

Shipments from TCL and Hisense are expected to rise by 15% and 7%, respectively, while Vizio, which is accelerating its push into the U.S. market, is projected to see a sharp 20% increase in shipments. However, as a result of this advance purchasing behavior, shipments in the second half of the year?which is traditionally the peak season?are expected to decrease by 4.5% to 102.27 million units.

TrendForce noted, "TV manufacturers that lack production capacity in Mexico may face difficulties if they are unable to relocate their production and supply chains by the end of the second quarter," and added, "There is a high possibility that TV prices will rise in the second half of the year due to tariffs."