Samsung’s Q2 operating earnings hit 14-year low

Samsung Electronics’ second-quarter operating profit is expected at roughly 600 billion won. Following the first quarter of the year, which generated the worst earnings in 14 years, a two-consecutive quarter operating profit stands at approximately 600 billion won, falling short of expectations. However, some predict that Samsung Electronics’ earnings will turn around as the semiconductor industry, which “bottomed out” in the second quarter, will gradually recover from the third quarter of the year.

On Friday, Samsung Electronics announced its second-quarter preliminary earnings of 60 trillion won in revenue and 600 billion won in operating profit on a consolidated basis. Revenue shrank 22% year-on-year, and operating profit plummeted more than 95% year-on-year. Finalized earnings are scheduled to be disclosed on July 27.

Although Samsung Electronics posted unprecedentedly sluggish earnings, there are also anticipations in the industry that "it reached its low point." This is because effects driven by memory chip production cuts will begin in the third quarter of the year, and mass production of HBM3 and DDR5, high-value-added memory products, will begin in earnest by the year’s end. New smartphones, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5, which will be showcased during the unpacked events on July 26, are expected to contribute to the recovered earnings.


Do-Young Kwak now@donga.com