• by Wayne Friedman , September 14, 2015

Shipments of TV sets posted their largest annual decline in five years.

A report from business researcher IHS says there was an 8% drop in year-to-year TV shipments in the second quarter, to 48 million TV sets -- the largest year-over-year decline since the second quarter of 2009 during the throes of a global recession.

The decrease can be attributed to the decline in LCD TVs -- which now account for 99% of all TV shipments -- and, IHS says, to an economic global slowdown.

These results are in contrast to 2014, when TV shipments rose 3% worldwide.

Emerging countries are a big part of the decline -- down around 17% in the second quarter. This follows a nearly 10% drop in the first quarter of this year. 

China is also contributing. After a big rise in shipments in the first quarter -- up 20% -- it has dropped down to just a 5% gain in the second quarter of this year.

In addition, for two straight quarters, developed countries have slumped in TV shipments -- down around 3% in the second quarter, following a 7% drop in the first quarter.

One bright spot: 4KTV shipments are up nearly 200%, increasing to 6.2 million in the second quarter.