SEOUL, July 07 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics on Tuesday estimated second-quarter operating profit at 89.4 trillion won ($58.4 billion) beating consensus of around 84.60 trillion won, as hot chip selling prices more than offset the cost of record performance bonuses for semiconductor employees.
The preliminary figure compares with operating profit of 57.2 trillion won in the previous quarter and 4.7 trillion won a year earlier and fueled a red-hot earning streak for the third quarter. It also suggests income could have nearly doubled from the January-March period when excluding bonus outlay.
Second-quarter revenue came to 171 trillion won, slightly short of the FnGuide consensus of 172.68 trillion won, but much higher than 133.9 trillion won in the previous quarter and 74.6 trillion won a year earlier,
The world's top DRAM maker's second-quarter earnings were highly anticipated, given the red-hot demand for memory chips powering AI, which also spilled over into mass-market memory due to supply constraints.
Citi Research estimated that average selling prices for DRAM and NAND rose 44 percent and 53 percent, respectively, from the first quarter.
The latecomer in the high-bandwidth memory race was also expected to benefit from long-term strategic supply contracts with major technology companies seeking to lock in memory supplies.
Industry sources also said provisions for employee performance bonuses were at least partially reflected in the quarter, while stronger seasonal demand for air conditioners and other premium home appliances during an early summer heatwave likely supported the consumer electronics business.
Samsung will release detailed earnings, including business division results, later this month.
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