SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Samsung Electronics said Tuesday its profit for the past quarter plunged nearly 70% as the weak global economy depressed demand for its consumer electronics and computer memory chips.
The company’s operating profit of 4.3 trillion won ($3.5 billion) for the three months to December was a 69% decline from the same period a year earlier, marking its lowest quarterly profit since last year. third quarter of 2014. Revenue fell 8% to 70.46 billion won ($57.2 billion).
The South Korean tech giant had thrived during the first two years of the pandemic on its dual strengths in parts and finished goods, benefiting from robust demand for PCs, TVs and chips that power computer servers as the virus forced Millions to work at home.
But it has been harder for the company to weather the economic shock unleashed by Russia’s war on Ukraine, which has disrupted industrial supply chains and left major economies grappling with higher inflation and slower growth.
“The business environment deteriorated significantly in the fourth quarter due to weak demand amid a global economic slowdown,” Samsung said in a statement.
The company’s profit from its butter bread semiconductor business reached 270 billion won (US$219 million) in the latest quarter, down significantly from 8.83 trillion won (US$7.1 billion). dollars) that you earned the previous year.
Samsung said chip prices fell sharply amid weakening demand as customers adjusted their inventories in the face of “deepening uncertainties” in the global economy, a problem the company said will likely last until the first quarter of 2023.
Samsung also expects demand for its smartphones and TVs to decline further in the first quarter amid the global economic downturn.
