The Samsung Galaxy Ace smartphone
Strong smartphone sales boosted Samsung Electronics Co’s profit up 17 per cent in the fourth quarter, the company reported. Net profit reached 4trn won (US$3.5bn) in the three months that ended in December compared to 3.4trn won in the same quarter last year, Samsung said in a regulatory filing.
Sales rose 13pc to 47.3trn won, in line with a preliminary estimate announced on 6 January.
The company’s operating profit also increased in the fourth quarter, by 75.8pc to 5.3trn won.
Full-year net income fell 15pc to 13.7trn won, while sales climbed 6.7pc to a record 165trn won.
Decreasing profits at Samsung’s liquid-crystal display business may have contributed to the company’s plans to release more phones and tablet computers down the line, according to Bloomberg.
Samsung was the top smartphone seller in 2011, achieving a market share of 19.9pc, though its rival Apple sold more handsets in the fourth quarter, Bloomberg reported Strategy Analytics as saying.
Apple had a 19pc share last year after selling 37m iPhones in the three months ending in December, compared with Samsung’s 36.5m. Apple reported on 25 January that its quarterly profit more than doubled to US$13.1bn.
