Samsung's telecom unit profits grow 23 percent in Q3 2009

Samsung Electronics saw a profit of 3.72 trillion KRW (US$3.1 billion) in the third quarter, up from 1.22 trillion KRW (US$1.0 billion) in the same quarter last year across its semiconductor, LCD, telecom (phones), and digital media units. It was the company's highest quarterly profit ever, though its handset business was a relatively weak gain for the company.

Samsung's telecom unit saw profit of 1.03 trillion KRW (US$875 billion) in Q3, up 23 percent from 840 billion KRW (US$713 million) year-over-year. The company says that strong touchscreen handset demand and emerging market sales helped it ship 60.2 million units, giving the company 16 percent year-over-year growth. Telecom sales rose to 10.7 trillion KRW (US$9.1 billion) from 8.88 trillion KRW (US$7.5 billion) in the year-ago period. Samsung is targeting a 20 percent or greater share of the global mobile phone market for 2009.

The company expects phone demand to rise in the fourth quarter because of the holiday season and because of emerging markets. It cautioned investors that there would be increasing competition from other manufacturers in mid- to low-end markets.