[News] Samsung Anticipates Q2 Profit to Soar on AI Demand with a 15-fold Increase

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Thanks to the rebound in memory chip demand amid accelerated global AI development, Samsung Electronics reported its strongest sales and profit growth in years. According to its financial guidance announced on July 5th, the semiconductor giant projects its operating profit to grow more than 15-fold YoY to 10.4 trillion won (USD 7.5 billion) in its preliminary results for the April-June quarter, outstripping market expectations.

In addition, the company expects its sales to increase by approximately 23% to 74 trillion won. According to a report from Bloomberg, this marks the largest rise since the peak levels seen during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021.

The forecast is way better than LSEG SmartEstimate’s earlier forecast, which expected Samsung Electronics’ operating profit for Q2 2024 to reach 8.8 trillion won (roughly USD 6.34 billion).

Samsung is scheduled to release final earnings, including divisional breakdowns, on July 31.

It is also worth noting that Samsung is releasing its results just days ahead of planned three-day walkouts by union organizers, starting from July 8th. According to Bloomberg, the move would involve over 28,000 members, including those at crucial chip plants, due to a wage dispute. The extent of participation in Monday’s walkout remains uncertain at this time.

Citing market sources, the report noted that Samsung’s Q2 financial results highlight the memory market’s robust recovery this year from a sharp decline post-Covid, driven by increased demand from data centers and AI development, which contributes to a turnaround in Samsung’s largest division, which had incurred losses the previous year.

According to TrendForce, Samsung’s global share of DRAM and NAND Flash output in 2023 was 46.8% and 32.4%, respectively. An earlier report by the Korea Economic Daily indicated that Samsung’s HBM production has been sold out in 2024.

According to the latest forecast by Trendforce, the HBM market is poised for robust growth, driven by significant pricing premiums and increased capacity needs for AI chips. HBM prices are expected to Increase by 5–10% in 2025.

Read more

• [News] Samsung Establishes New HBM Team to Advance HBM3, HBM3e and HBM4 Development
• Samsung Strike Has No Immediate Impact on Memory Production, with No Shipment Shortages, Says TrendForce

(Photo credit: Samsung)