Samsung Electronics bottom line in the final quarter of 2022 was hit by falling demand for consumer products and a drop in memory chip prices, with its operating profit forecast to plunge 69 per cent year-on-year to an eight-year low.
In a quarterly earnings guidance, the smartphone giant estimated Q4 operating profit would fall to KRW4.3 trillion ($3.4 billion) from a record of KRW13.9 trillion in the same period in 2021. It expects revenue from October to December to fall 8.6 per cent to KRW70 trillion.
The company will release its Q4 earnings, with a breakdown by division, later in the month.
Macroeconomic instability hurt demand for tech products worldwide, resulting in a glut of chips and putting downward pressure on prices. TrendForce predicted in September prices of DRAM chips would decline 13 per cent to 18 per cent in Q4.
Earlier this week, Samsung vice chairman and co-CEO Han Jong-hee told The Wall Street Journal that rising interest rates and inflation would slow demand for consumer products throughout 2023.
