Japan makers said to ramp up iPhone 5S, 5C parts production

Japan makers said to ramp up iPhone 5S, 5C parts production
With new iPhones expected to be unveiled this month, production at Japan Display, TDK, and others is in high gear, according to the Nikkei business daily. Japan Display Inc. (JDI), a merger of the small and medium-size display businesses of Sony, Hitachi, and Toshiba, is in "full production" Nikkei said in a report Thursday. TDK, which supplies Apple with inductor coils, among other components, boosted production this summer to meet demand for the new iPhones, expected to be announced at a September 10 event.The report also sites an IHS analyst, who said that if sales of the new iPhone models are solid, that could drive the prices of flash memory higher.Toshiba is major supplier of flash memory to Apple.But it's not all good news.Suppliers in Japan are concerned about being too dependent on Apple, Nikkei said.That can lead to a sharp drop in production when sales of Apple products decline.Along these lines, a report Wednesday from Digitimes Research said that iPhone 5 shipments fell by 6.2 million units in the second quarter, as consumers wait for the release of the 5S and 5C.