The global TV market shrank nearly 16 percent in the first quarter of the year due to the coronavirus pandemic, with only South Korean makers reporting slight growth, a market tracker said Tuesday.

Worldwide TV shipments stood at 43.29 million units in the January-March period, down 16.4 percent from a year earlier, according to Omdia, formerly IHS Markit.

TCL and other Chinese TV manufacturers saw their sales dip 14.4 percent to 15.13 million, with those of Sony and other Japanese players tumbling 26.2 percent to 4.42 million.

But combined shipments by Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. increased 2.6 percent on-year to 16.78 million units.

South Korean TV makers recaptured the world's No. 1 spot in terms of shipments in the first quarter after giving up the title to Chinese rivals last year.

The combined market share of Samsung and LG surged to 38.8 percent in the first quarter from 31.6 percent a year earlier.

Samsung saw its share grow to 24.1 percent from 18.8 percent.

China's market share edged up to 35 percent from 34.1 percent, while Japan's proportion dropped to 10.2 percent from 11.6 percent.

Shipments of LCD TVs sank 16.6 percent on-year to 42.66 million units during the three-month period, but those of OLED TVs gained 2.5 percent to 620,000.

An industry source said Chinese TV makers were pounded by the coronavirus pandemic, with South Korean firms taking a smaller hit.

But the coronavirus outbreak is expected to deal a harsh blow to shipments of South Korean manufacturers in the second quarter, he added.

In terms of the value of TVs sold, Samsung's market share is estimated at 31.9 percent in the first quarter, with that of LG reaching 17 percent, according to their business reports.

Samsung topped the global TV market for the 14th consecutive year in 2019, with a market share of 30.9 percent, followed by its local rival LG Electronics Inc. with 16.3 percent and Japan's Sony Corp. with 9.4 percent. (Yonhap)