LG delivered 16 percent fewer smartphones last quarter

LG reports that it delivered fewer smartphones in the fourth quarter of last year. As a result, the entire group has made a significantly lower profit, the South Korean company says.

When announcing the quarterly figures, LG does not give exact figures about the number of smartphones delivered, something that the manufacturer did until a few years ago. The company reports that despite the release of a ‘new competitive premium product’, deliveries fell by 16 percent compared to the same period in 2017. That premium product is presumably the V40 ThinQ that will soon be released in the Benelux.

The unit responsible for the production of televisions improved, but here too there was a slight decrease in deliveries compared to the last quarter of 2017. The manufacturer attributes this to increased competition and unfavorable exchange rates. LG says it wants to grow sales and profits in this home entertainment segment in the coming years by focusing on more deliveries of OLED TVs and LCD TVs with relatively large screens.

Two other parts performed relatively well, especially the part that makes vehicle components. There, deliveries rose by 71 percent compared to the same quarter a year earlier, which LG attributes to mass production of new products for the infotainment sector and the automotive lighting market, in which the manufacturer is also active through the acquisition of the company ZKW. The LG division that makes washing machines and refrigerators saw a 3.3 percent increase in deliveries.

LG’s profit in the past quarter amounted to USD 67.1 million, compared to USD 331 million a year earlier. Revenue came in at $14 billion, a drop of seven percent from a year earlier. For the whole of 2018, revenue was $54.4 billion, which is a record for the company. Full-year profit came in at $2.4 billion, an increase of ten percent from 2017.