Samsung expects profits to rise thanks to AI

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Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, The widespread adoption of AI has led to an increasing demand for advanced computer chips.

  • Author, Joao da Silva
  • Role, Business reporter

Samsung Electronics expects profit for the three months to June 2024 to be 15 times higher than in the same period last year.

A boom in artificial intelligence (AI) has sent prices of advanced chips soaring, raising the company’s forecast for the second quarter.

The South Korean tech giant is the world’s largest manufacturer of memory chips, smartphones and televisions.

The announcement sent Samsung shares up more than 2% in early trading hours in Seoul.

The company expects profit to rise to 10.4 trillion won (7.54 billion dollars; 5.9 billion pounds) this quarter, compared with 670 billion won last year.

That beats analysts’ forecasts of 8.8 trillion won, according to LSEG SmartEstimate.

“We are currently seeing an explosion in demand for AI chips in data centers and smartphones,” said Marc Einstein, chief analyst at Tokyo-based research and advisory firm ITR Corporation.

Optimism about AI is one of the reasons for the broader market rally over the past year, which saw the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq in the United States hit new records on Wednesday.

Chip giant Nvidia’s market value soared above $3 trillion last month, briefly making it the world’s most valuable company.

“The AI ​​boom that gave Nvidia a huge boost is also driving profits for Samsung and, in fact, the entire industry,” Einstein said.

Samsung Electronics is the flagship of the South Korean conglomerate Samsung Group.

The tech company is facing a possible three-day strike next week, expected to begin Monday, as a workers’ union demands a more transparent system for bonuses and time off.

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