Chimei Innolux (3481.TW), Taiwan's largest LCD maker, plans to spin off its touch panel business as it seeks bigger gains from a business expected to be one of its fastest growth engines. An initial public offering will be as early as the second half of this year, a source with direct knowledge of the plan told Reuters on Tuesday. Analysts estimate the business accounts for 5-10 percent of Chimei's total sales for 2010 of about T$474 billion ($16 billion). Touch panels are one of the hottest areas in technology at present thanks to the rapid growth of gadgets like the iPad and iPhone. Chimei's parent, the Hon Hai Group, is one of the biggest manufacturers of the Apple (AAPL.O) products.
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