Vice Chairman Lee Jay-yong of Samsung Electronics.

Samsung Electronics on July 30 reported 48.54 trillion won in sales and 6.9 trillion won in operating profit in the second quarter of 2015. The figures represent a 3 percent rise from 47.12 trillion won in sales in the 1st quarter of the year and a 15 percent surge in operating profit, from 5.98 trillion won from the previous quarter. 

Despite such economic uncertainties as the weak euro and emerging economies, Samsung Electronics saw Q2 sales and operating profit rise over the previous quarter due to an excellent performance in the semiconductor division and an improvement of the consumer electronics business division. 

Samsung Electronics has chalked up more than 200 trillion won in annual sales every year since 2012. Can the Korean electronics giant maintain its momentum. The electronics giant logged 95.66 trillion won in sales in the first half of the year, falling just shy of the 100 trillion won sales barrier. Whether Samsung again tops 200 trillion won depends on how much the company does in the second half of the year 

Samsung Electronics’ Q2 performance was not good compared to 7.19 trillion won in sales for the same quarter of last year. Looking at the company’s business performances on a quarterly basis, the Q2 operating profit was better than 4.6 trillion won in operating profit for the 3rd quarter of 2014. 

Samsung Electronics’ relatively good overall performance this year is owed mostly to the semiconductor business’ remarkable achievement. The semiconductor business, the world’s No. 1 DRAM maker, chalked up a record high 11.29 trillion won in sales for the 2nd quarter of the year. The business division’s operating profit came in at 3.4 trillion won, closing in on a record high of 3.42 trillion won, which was set in the third quarter of 2010. 

The consumer electronics business division saw operating profit return from a 140 billion won loss in the first quarter of the year to a 210 billion won profit in the second quarter, thanks mostly to rising sales of air conditioners and refrigerators.  

But the smartphone business seemed to contribute to its overall performance. The IT and mobile business division racked up 26.06 trillion won in Q2 sales, similar to 25.89 trillion won in the previous quarter. Given the release of Samsung Electronics’ flagship smartphone Galaxy S6, the smartphone business division did not fare well. The division saw operating profit edge up to 2.74 trillion won, up 20 billion won from the first quarter. The division’s 1st half operating profit stood at 5.5 trillion won, which comes to half of last year’s 10.85 trillion won operating profit. 

Prospects for the 2nd half are mixed. The forecast for the semiconductor business is straight forward, but prospects for the smartphone business are foggy. 

The Exynos, Samsung Electronics’ high-performance application processor that powers smartphones and tablet PCs, is forecast to cruise in the second half of this year. Galaxy Note 5, to be released in New York on Aug. 13, is to be installed with the Exynos Samsung Electronics developed on its own. Declining prices of DRAMs and NAND flesh memory chips are predicted to stabilize in the third quarter of the year. Apple has an unfavorable influence in the smartphone business, but that brings benefits to the Samsung’s semiconductor business. Samsung’s application processor A9 will be featured in the upcoming iPhone 6S. Apple will release the phone Sept. 18 and it will provide a boost to Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor business. 

To upstage Apple, Samsung Electronics plans to advance the release of Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy 6 Edge Plus to Sept. 13.

Samsung Electronics headquarters in Seoch-dong, southeastern Seoul.(Photos:Samsung Electronics)