Samsung is expecting its profits to surge by up to 52% amid the global chip shortage.
A surge in profits for Samsung?
The tech giant - which manufactures an array of televisions, phones and home appliances as the the largest memory chip and smartphone make in the world- estimated that it made 13.8tn won ($11.5bn; £8.5bn) in the period, which saw would make it the highest fourth quarter operating profit since 2017, although the result missed a Refinitiv SmartEstimate of 15.2 trillion won, which analysts attributed to items such as employees' bonuses.
technology analyst Sam Reynolds told the BBC: "Samsung is well placed to profit from the record-breaking demand for PCs and electronics. The Korean won continues to depreciate, making Korea's exports more attractive on the global market."
It comes after months of uncertainty over the global chip shortage, which has seen manufacturers from car firms to Apple experience disruption.
Park Sung-soon, analyst at Cape Investment & Securities, told Reuters: "It looks like a shock because it came out less than the consensus, but I don't think it's as bad as it looks. It seems they reflected various costs in the fourth quarter. It's unclear as of now if there were any changes in expected chip shipments."
Back in December 2020, Statista reported that things were "looking up" for Samsung following a "dip" in profits in 2019.
The outlet reported: "After Samsung saw its profits dip in 2019, things are looking up since the latter half of 2020. The South Korean electronics giant posted Q3 profits of more than $13 billion in 2021. This means profits were up by more than 19 percent compared with the same quarter in the previous year."