Beijing's move to tighten monetary conditions has raised concerns about a potential slowdown in the giant economy, hurting the demand outlook for countries such as South Korea, which ships about a quarter of its exports to China. Those worries and weak results from US tech firms put pressure on Samsung shares on Friday, which ended down 3 percent, or 5 percent on the week. "Talk of exit strategies can weigh on Samsung as well as the entire market in the coming months," said Choi Jong-hyeok, a fund manager at Midas Asset Management.
"But I am confident about Samsung's business this year. Chips and LCDs are doing great, and Samsung is working on its smartphones although it was a little late to start." Ahead of the results, analysts expected net profit at Asia's biggest technology firm by market capitalisation to grow by a third to 13 trillion won ($11 billion) this year, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
A revival in corporate demand for personal computers and robust TV panel demand spurred by Chinese buyers and major sports events such as the World Cup should lead to a strong first half, bucking the usual weak seasonality, Samsung said. The company said it was considering increasing its investment in memory chips to meet demand. Samsung, the world's biggest TV brand and No 2 mobile phone maker, swung to a quarterly operating profit, slightly ahead of market forecasts, as the tech sector recovery boosted chip prices and shoppers snapped up TVs and mobile phones.
Its bigger rival in mobile phones, Nokia, reported forecast-beating earnings on Thursday, while Motorola turned a small quarterly profit but predicted a loss in the current quarter. Consolidated operating profit in the fourth quarter rose to 3.7 trillion won, above a consensus forecast for 3.58 trillion won profit from Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S and exactly in line with the company's own forecast earlier this month.