Flat screen firm buys Japanese equipment

Nikon Corp said yesterday it won its first Chinese supply order for flat-panel-making equipment as demand for the thin screens surges in the country.

The world's second-largest manufacturer of this equipment won an order from China's largest panel-maker, BOE Technology Group for 16 advanced screen-making machines, according to Tsunesaburo Uemura, a spokesman for Nikon, cited by Bloomberg News.

Equipment shipments will begin at the year's end, said Uemura, who declined to disclose the value of the order.