Seoul, Jan 8
LG Electronics, South Korea's leading home appliance maker, on Wednesday estimated its fourth-quarter operating profit decreased more than 53 percent from a year earlier due to global economic uncertainties.
Operating profit for the three months ended in December dropped to an estimated 146.1 billion won ($100.7 million) from 312.5 billion won in the same period of 2023, the company said in a regulatory filing.
Sales, however, increased 0.2 per cent to 22.77 trillion won. The data for net earnings was not available, reports Yonhap news agency.
For the whole of 2024, LG Electronics said its operating profit likely decreased 6.1 percent on-year to 3.43 trillion won, while its sales climbed 6.7 percent to hit an all-time high of 87.74 trillion won.
The company said its operating profit went down due to a rise in shipping costs and one-off costs sparked by its stock consolidation efforts, but its flagship home appliances business showed robust performance.
LG Electronics' home appliances unit is expected to post annual sales of over 30 trillion won for the second consecutive year in 2024.