Samsung expects higher sales, presumably due to higher component prices
Samsung expects it to have made more sales and profits in the first months of 2018 than in the same period last year. The group does not name any causes, but analysts believe it is due to higher prices of nand and dram.
Samsung says in its preview of the quarterly figures that it expects a turnover increase of around 18 percent, while operating profit would be even 57 percent higher. Last year Samsung benefited from the increased prices of dram and nand, parts that other manufacturers need a lot.
Analysts expect that the peak in prices of nand and dram has now been reached and that sales of Samsung’s hardware branch will decline in the coming quarters, Reuters reports. If the price falls, the demand for those components will rise again, so that the decrease in turnover and price decrease will not be the same.
In addition, analysts estimate that Samsung has supplied many older models of smartphones. The company released its Galaxy S9 smartphone in March. A new Galaxy S model always spikes deliveries, but according to analysts spoke to Reuters, consumers are shocked by the high prices for new models and therefore often opt for cheaper options, including previous-generation smartphones.
Samsung only publishes a few figures as a preview of the quarterly report and does not say anything about the turnover and profit per business unit. That will only happen when the full quarterly figures are published at the end of April.
Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+