2012 Chinese and European LED lighting markets propsects

TAIWAN: In order to meet the market expectations for lm/$ and to increase market share, LED lighting companies have been striving to make their way into the lighting market. China launched a new subsidy policy for the solid-state lighting products in 2012, arranging public biddings for interior and outdoor lighting products, which took place on March 20.

LEDinside, the LED research division of TrendForce, released the “2012 Chinese LED Lighting Market Report,” indicating that unlike previous policies which focused on upstream LED chip companies, the latest policy mainly subsidizes end-market products, such as LED street/tunnel light, LED down light and Self-ballasted LED-reflectors (MR series and PAR series).

The Chinese government’s favoritism towards local companies contributed to the fact that the bidding winners are mostly China-based lighting companies. The government will offer 30 percent subsidies for the winners for the aforementioned products. TrendForce believes the policy will greatly stimulate the outdoor lighting market in China. The outdoor LED lights are estimated to reach 1 million units by 2012, and the orders generated by it are expected to go to the major companies.

European LED market remains promising
On the other hand, Europe has become one of the biggest LED markets in the world. Although large LED subsidy policies cannot be seen in Europe, its high electricity price and its cultural emphasis on lighting still makes LED lighting a promising option in the commercial lighting and outdoor lighting areas.

According to LEDinside’s “2012 European LED Lighting Market Report,” besides halogen light and fluorescent lighting, the traditional lighting companies in Europe also actively develop LED lighting products and acquire the lighting projects in Europe in cooperation with local architects, designers and global distributors. TrendForce estimates the value of the European LED market to grow to $3.01 billion by 2012.