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The South Korean giant estimates to have made a profit of 6.6trn won in Q1 2024 – a massive jump from the 640bn in the first quarter last year.
Samsung Electronics expects its profits in the first quarter this year to increase more than tenfold over the same period last year as chip prices recover from a post-pandemic slump and demand for AI continues to soar.
In its earnings guidance published today (5 April), Samsung estimates to have made a consolidated operating profit of 6.6trn Korean won – a big jump from the 2.82trn in the previous quarter and the 640bn in the first quarter of 2023.
This meteoric rise in profits coincides with a steady rise in sales. Samsung said it estimates to have raked in approximately 71trn Korean won in Q1 2024. In the previous quarter, sales stood at 67.78trn Korean won, while it was 63.75trn Korean won a year ago.
Based in Seoul, South Korea, Samsung is one of the world’s leading consumer electronics brands with a significant hold in the smartphone market – particularly in Asia, where it gives Apple a run for its money.
In January, the company teamed up with Google to bring a host of generative AI features to its flagship series of smartphones, the Samsung Galaxy S24, which is poised to usher in a “new era of mobile AI” according to company executives.
“There is a great opportunity to deliver new experiences now that GenAI is seeping into consumers’ lives,” Forrester analyst Thomas Husson said at the time. “Boosted performance of the new devices will help Samsung exploit its nine-month window of opportunity to take leadership in the premium smartphone market before the launch of Apple’s iPhone 16.”
Samsung had reported a drop in earnings in recent quarters as a global semiconductor slump ate into its chip manufacturing business – which accounts for a big chunk of its profits.
A forecast from the company in July 2023 warned that its quarterly operating profit was roughly 600bn Korean won, a decline of nearly 96pc compared to the same period the previous year.
Samsung saw a similar profit drop of roughly 96pc in the first quarter of 2023, while its profits for the last quarter of 2022 were Samsung’s lowest since 2014.
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