Seoul, South Korea – Third-quarter sales in the digital media division at Samsung Electronics, the companies largest segment, which includes consumer electronics, dropped 4 percent to $1.77 billion, compared with results of the previous quarter.
Operating income for the division was $15.3 million in the third quarter.
All of Samsung’s major divisions, with the exception of Semiconductors, remained profitable in the face of unfavorable global conditions during the third quarter. The company’s Information & Communications division, which includes mobile phones, reported $276.3 million in operating income, 16 percent higher than the previous quarter. Sales in Information & Communications during the third quarter reached $1.69 billion, down 5 percent compared with second-quarter results.
Samsung said the Information & Communications division has responded aggressively to the changeover in the domestic market to 2.5G mobile phones, and has strong marketability overseas as well.
Samsung also said it is using its brand name to bolster its digital TVs and DVD players, laying the groundwork for growth amid the economic slowdown.
Overall in the third quarter, Samsung Electronics reported $5.55 billion in sales, down from $6.75 billion. The company recorded $14 million in operating income. Net income was off 75 percent from the $1.3 billion registered in the same quarter a year ago, down to $322.3 million in the current quarter.
Through nine months, sales totaled $18.33 billion and operating income $1.7 billion. Sales are down 5 percent from the $19.32 billion registered in the year-ago nine months, while operating income is off 63 percent, compared with the $4.58 billion recorded in 2000.
Samsung said it will lower overall 2001 capital expenditures to $3.6 billion, down from the previous figure of $3.9 billion.
