LG Q1 Profit To Soar 20%, TV & Appliances Boom

LG Electronics has forecast a 20.2% YOY increase in Q1 operating profit, following strong performance from its OLED TV and home appliances range. The strong sales offset continued losses from its smartphone division.

January to March operating profit is estimated to notch 1.1 trillion won (US$1.02 billion), versus 921 billion won posted for the same period last year. The result surpass local analysts’ expectations for 885.7 billion won.

It’s reportedly the first time LG has posted a quarterly earnings above 1 trillion won since 2009.

Sales revenue is forecast to jump 3.2% to 15.1 trillion won, up from 14.6 trillion won for the previous corresponding period.

LG Electronics will provide its full Q1 earnings result later this month, including performance for most business divisions.

In contrast to the growth of it TV and premium home appliance range, LG’s smartphone division has continued to slump.

Local analysts forecast a 10 billion won operating loss for LG’s mobile communications business. Last year, the division posted a 717.2 billion won annual loss.

The company is scheduled to unveil its new flagship smartphone, the G7, sometime next month.