(2nd LD) Strong smartphone sales fuel Samsung's Q4 net | YONHAP NEWS

SEOUL, Jan. 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korean tech behemoth Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday its fourth-quarter earnings grew 17 percent on-year, fueled by strong sales of smartphones and improved chip business.

Net profit amounted to 4 trillion won (US$3.56 billion) in the October-December period, up 17 percent from the previous year, the company said in a regulatory filing. It marked the largest gain since the 4.46 trillion won tallied in the third quarter of 2010.

Sales expanded 13 percent to an all-time high of 47.3 trillion won in the fourth-quarter and operating profit jumped 75.8 percent on-year to a record 5.3 trillion won. The results are slightly higher than Samsung's earnings guidance released earlier this month.

For all of 2011, the company logged a net income of 13.7 trillion won, down 15 percent from the previous year. Its sales rose 6.7 percent on-year to 165 trillion won and operating profit inched down 6.05 percent to 16.2 trillion won.
Sony, Panasonic Forecast Deeper Losses as Samsung Dominates - Bloomberg

Japan’s biggest makers of phones, televisions and chips say they’ll lose about $17 billion this year, about three-quarters of what Samsung Electronics Co. will spend on research to lengthen the lead over its competitors.

Sony Corp. more than doubled its annual loss forecast for the year ending March 31 as it announced a new chief executive officer, while Panasonic Corp. (6752) and Sharp Corp. predicted the worst losses in their histories. Their combined losses compare with the $22 billion that Samsung, Asia’s largest consumer- electronics company, said it will invest in capital expenditures.

Japanese companies hurt by a stronger yen, flooding that swamped Thailand factories and weaker demand for their TVs may not be able to regain ground lost to Samsung and Apple Inc. That’s prompting Sony and Panasonic to focus on sectors including medical devices, solar panels and rechargeable batteries in an effort to revive earnings.