Samsung's Q2 Earnings Reveal Chip Division Struggles Amid AI-Driven Recovery Hopes

Samsung predicts gradual second-half recovery after Q2 chip profits plunge 94%

SEOUL, July 31 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab forecast a gradual second-half recovery for its chips business after second-quarter operating profit at the division plunged 94% from a year earlier due to shipment delays and U.S. export curbs on advanced semiconductor sales to China. The South Korean tech giant said on Thursday it expected the industry environment would improve in the second half, driven by artificial intelligence demand due to continued investments by major cloud service providers. But hours after U.S. President Donald Trump announced he would place 15% tariffs on South Korean goods, Samsung added there were concerns about slowing global growth due to an uncertain trade environment and geopolitical risks. The world's largest memory chip maker posted 4.7 trillion won ($3.37 billion) in operating profit for the April-June period, its weakest in six quarters and roughly in line with an earlier estimate that had disappointed investors. Its revenue rose 0.7% to 74.6 trillion won, in line with its earlier estimate of 74 trillion won. Samsung's chip division posted a profit of 400 billion won during the quarter, down from 6.5 trillion won a year earlier, marking the first time in six quarters that the figure has dropped below the 1 trillion won mark. Samsung said in a statement that inventory value adjustments to memory chips and one-off costs from the impact of U.S. export restrictions on sales to China on its contract chipmaking business lowered the division's profit. Prolonged weakness in its financial performance has deepened investor concerns over the South Korean tech giant's ability to catch up with smaller rivals in developing high-bandwidth memory chips sold to customers including Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab and used in AI data centres. But Samsung reported earnings just days after Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab said it had signed a $16.5 billion deal to source chips from the tech giant, a move that could bolster the South Korean company's struggling foundry business that makes chips on contract. Major tech companies Meta Platforms (META.O), opens new tab and Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab on Wednesday pointed to strong AI chip demand and major investments in data centres in their earnings announcements. Shares of Samsung were up 0.7% in the morning trade, in line with the benchmark KOSPI's (.KS11), opens new tab 0.7% rise. ($1 = 1,393.4100 won) Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Joyce Lee and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Jamie Freed Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Samsung Q2 profit drops 55% on weak AI chip sales, China curbs

SEOUL, July 31 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab reported on Thursday a 55% drop in second-quarter operating profit as delays in high-bandwidth memory chip shipments and U.S. export curbs on advanced chip sales to China continued to drag on its key semiconductor division. The world's largest memory chip maker posted 4.7 trillion won ($3.37 billion) in operating profit for the April-June period. The result was roughly in line with its earlier estimate of 4.6 trillion won, which had disappointed investors. Its revenue rose 0.7% to 74.6 trillion won, in line with its earlier estimate of 74 trillion won. Prolonged weakness in its financial performance has deepened investor concerns over the South Korean tech giant's ability to catch up with smaller rivals in developing high-bandwidth memory chips sold to customers including Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab and used in artificial intelligence data centres. Samsung reported earnings just days after Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab said it had signed a $16.5 billion deal to source chips from the tech giant, a move that could bolster the South Korean company's struggling foundry business that makes chips on contract. ($1 = 1,393.4100 won) Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Joyce Lee; Editing by Jamie Freed Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Samsung posts brutal financials as chip business profits plunge by 94%

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. What just happened? Samsung's chip division has been in trouble for months, but the latest quarterly results confirm the slump is even deeper than feared. The company now faces heavy losses in semiconductors even as other divisions struggle to keep its profits afloat. Samsung Electronics recently posted its second-quarter financial results, and they're worse than expected. According to CBNC, the Korean tech giant reported revenue of 74.6 trillion won ($53.7 billion US), slightly up from 74.07 trillion won ($53.3 billion) during the same period last year. Unfortunately, operating profits fell sharply to just ₩4.7 trillion ($3.38 billion), dragged down by a massive 93.8 percent drop in its chip business. Simply put, Samsung's results underperformed even the company's gloomy forecast from nearly a month ago. The Device Solutions division, which handles memory chip manufacturing, semiconductor design, and foundry operations, saw its operating earnings nearly vanish year-over-year. The chip business posted quarterly operating profits of only ₩400 billion ($288 million), down sharply from ₩6.45 trillion ($4.64 billion) a year earlier. Revenue also declined to ₩27.9 trillion ($20 billion) from ₩28.56 trillion ($20.5 billion) in 2024. Samsung's CFO Soon-cheol Park attributed the profit slump to multiple factors, including the impact of Trump-era tariffs and export restrictions on China. Despite these challenges, Park forecasts a gradual improvement in the coming months. "Despite ongoing global economic concerns driven by uncertain trade policies and geopolitical tensions, the IT industry appears poised for a gradual recovery fueled by increasing momentum in AI and robotics," Park said. Samsung expects a business rebound in the second half of the year, with steady earnings growth through 2025. Negotiations between South Korea and the Trump administration helped ease market uncertainties, though Washington may still impose additional semiconductor tariffs at some point. The company is apprehensive about its struggling foundry division, which Counterpoint Research VP Neil Shah calls a "critical juncture between survival and profitability." Samsung's VP Noh Mi-jung expects foundry revenue to improve in the second half of the year, largely thanks to mass production of next-generation 2nm chips for mobile devices. Samsung recently delayed construction of a massive new chip plant in Texas after failing to secure a major customer. However, the company landed a lucrative contract to manufacture Tesla's next-generation AI6 chips, offering hope for a turnaround. Analyst Nam Hyung Kim warned that manufacturing costs at the new Taylor plant will be much higher than in Korea, so it remains to be seen if the US venture will benefit Samsung overall. The South Korean foundry business also faces mounting competition from market leader TSMC, SK Hynix, and others. Samsung's strongest second-quarter performance came from its mobile division, which posted operating profits of 3.1 trillion won, up from 2.23 trillion won in 2024. The Galaxy S25 and A series smartphones, along with Galaxy tablets, saw "robust" sales, while newly launched foldable phones should hold off growing competition from Chinese brands.

Samsung earnings dip as chip division weighs on results despite mobile and display growth - SiliconANGLE

Samsung earnings dip as chip division weighs on results despite mobile and display growth Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. today reported a steep decline in quarterly profits due to ongoing volatility in the semiconductor market, as the company's chip business once again weighed on overall earnings. For the quarter that ended on June 30, Samsung reported consolidated revenue of 74.6 trillion won ($57.4 billion), up 1% year-over-year but notably down 6% from the previous quarter. Operating profit fell to 4.7 trillion won ($3.6 billion), down 55% year-over-year and 30% from the previous quarter, while net profit dropped to 48% year-over-year to 5.1 trillion won ($3.9 billion). The results were highly influenced by Samsung's Device Solutions division, which includes its semiconductor business. There were some positives, with memory chip revenue growing 11% quarter-over-quarter to 21.2 trillion won ($16.3 billion), driven by increased demand for DDR5 and HBM3E chips used in artificial intelligence servers, but at the same time, profitability fell sharply. Operating income from the division dropped to just 0.4 trillion won ($308 million), down a whopping 94% year-over-year. Samsung's foundry business also continued to struggle in the quarter, as U.S. export restrictions on advanced AI chips to China detented sales. The figures were not all doom and gloom, however, with Samsung's Mobile eXperience division seeing revenue from smartphones reach 28.5 trillion won ($21.9 billion), up 7% year-over-year, despite a 21% decline from the previous quarter following the release of the Galaxy S25 range. Samsung's mobile unit delivered 3.1 trillion won ($2.4 billion) in operating profit, up 41% year-over-year, off the back of strong A-series and tablet sales, along with improved cost management. The company's display unit also delivered solid results, with Samsung Display Corp. posting 0.5 trillion won ($385 million) in profit on 6.4 trillion won ($4.9 billion) in sales, up 17% year-over-year. The growth was driven by small and medium-sized displays used in premium smartphones and rising demand in IT and automotive segments. Harman, Samsung's automotive and audio division, reported its best quarter in a year with 0.5 trillion won ($385 million) in profit, up 67% year-over-year and from the last quarter. The growth was driven by Samsung ramping up its high-margin audio systems and optimizing costs. For the second half of 2025, Samsung is positioning itself to capitalize on growing demand for AI infrastructure and next-generation devices. With its semiconductor division, Samsung plans to expand sales of high-performance memory products, including 128GB DDR5 and 24Gb GDDR7 for AI servers, while accelerating the transition to 8th-generation V-NAND across its SSD portfolio. Its foundry business will begin mass production of a 2nm mobile system-on-chip using GAA technology, with an emphasis on improving fab utilization and profitability. While not mentioned in the earnings presentation, Samsung also signed a deal with Tesla Inc. on July 28 that will also boost its semiconductor division going forward. The deal includes a $16.5 billion contract for manufacturing advanced chips, likely using Samsung's cutting-edge 4nm and 3nm processes, to support Tesla's AI-powered autonomous driving systems and next-generation vehicle platforms. In mobile and consumer electronics, Samsung expects solid momentum driven by new form-factor launches such as foldables, TriFold and XR devices. The company launched a number of new handsets on July 9, including its thinnest-ever foldable, which has so far been well received by reviewers. Samsung Display is forecasting continued strength from premium smartphone and IT displays and plans to grow its QD-OLED monitor business, while the Harman unit is expected to sustain growth through seasonal audio demand and a rising share of automotive revenue.

Mixed Q2 for Samsung across mobile chips and displays

The Mobile eXperience (MX) and Networks businesses collectively generated KRW 29.2 trillion in consolidated revenue, achieving an operating profit of KRW 3.1 trillion. Samsung Electronics recently released its financial report for the second quarter, detailing performance across its mobile, display, and semiconductor divisions, alongside outlining strategic plans for the latter half of 2025. The report offers insights into current market trends and Samsung's forthcoming product innovations. The Mobile eXperience (MX) and Networks businesses collectively generated KRW 29.2 trillion in consolidated revenue, achieving an operating profit of KRW 3.1 trillion. While the MX division experienced a decrease in smartphone shipments compared to the first quarter, year-over-year results indicate increased revenue and operating profit compared to the same period last year. Samsung attributed this growth to robust sales of the Galaxy S25 series, Galaxy A series, and Galaxy tablets. The MX Business maintained what Samsung described as "solid double-digit profitability." The decline in shipments from Q1 to Q2 is normal due to the timing between the Galaxy S25 launch and the anticipated arrival of the Galaxy Z series foldables. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, Samsung intends to uphold its "flagship-first" approach, prioritizing its new foldable devices and the S25 series. The company will also continue to promote the AI capabilities integrated into its more affordable A-series smartphones. Samsung plans to extend AI functionalities to its tablet and wearable product lines as well. These enhancements are designed to provide a more seamless and intelligent user experience across the Samsung ecosystem. Samsung disclosed plans to expand its Galaxy ecosystem in the second half of 2025 with the introduction of new form factors, including XR devices and "TriFold devices." The specific use of "TriFold devices" suggests a confirmation of the rumored Galaxy Z TriFold, signaling Samsung's intent to explore and potentially commercialize multi-folding display technology. Samsung LSI is currently focused on enhancing its Exynos processors to ensure adoption in the 2026 flagship mobile lineups of a major customer, presumably referring to Samsung's own mobile division. In conjunction with these efforts, Samsung's Foundry Business will increase the production of mobile chipsets utilizing its 2nm GAA node technology. This is expected to support the manufacturing of the Exynos 2600, indicating a commitment to advanced chip manufacturing processes. The Device Solutions (DS) division, Samsung Electronics' second largest division, contributed KRW 27.9 trillion in revenue and KRW 0.4 trillion in operating profit, out of the total KRW 74.6 trillion revenue and KRW 4.7 trillion operating profit for Samsung Electronics as a whole. The memory business within the DS division reported increased sales of HBM3E for server applications and a higher proportion of high-density DDR5 memory products. The company indicated that previous delays in datacenter projects had been resolved, leading to increased SSD sales and the clearing of NAND inventory. However, the company had to adjust the value of its inventory, resulting in a one-time financial impact. The DS division also experienced impacts from export restrictions related to China in the non-memory segment. The Foundry Business also faced the need to adjust the value of its inventory following the implementation of US export restrictions on advanced AI chips to China. These restrictions have influenced the valuation and management of inventory within Samsung's foundry operations. Samsung Display generated KRW 6.4 trillion in revenue and KRW 0.5 trillion in operating profit. The revenue increase was driven by solid sales of new smartphone displays to major customers, in addition to sales of IT and automotive displays. Samsung Display reported continuous growth in sales of QD-OLED monitor panels, indicating strong demand from the gaming market. Samsung intends to strengthen its QD-OLED panel product line and accelerate future growth in this area.

Samsung Q2 2025: Profits down 54.8% YoY due to weak AI chip sales

Samsung has reported its earnings for Q2 2025 that ended June 30, 2025 in which the company posted 74.6 trillion won (USD 53.59 billion approx.) consolidated revenue, down 5.8% YoY, and down 5.68% QoQ. It made an operating profit of 4.7 trillion won (USD 3.37 billion), down 54.80% YoY, and down 29.85% QoQ, due to weak chip sales. Samsung said that Foundry Business remained weak due to the impact of inventory value adjustments that stemmed from US export restrictions on advanced AI chips to China, despite significant growth in revenue from the first quarter. The MX and Networks businesses posted 37 trillion won (USD 26.57 billion approx.) in consolidated revenue, up 6.56% YoY, but down 21% QoQ. The division posted 3.1 trillion won in operating profit, up 40.90% YoY, but down 27.90% QoQ. Smartphone shipments were less compared to Q1, when new models were released, but both revenue and operating profit grew YoY through robust sales of the Galaxy S25 series, Galaxy A series and Galaxy tablets, said Samsung. For the next quarter and for later this year, Samsung plans to continue a flagship-first approach for smartphone sales focusing on foldables and the Galaxy S25 series -- while emphasizing the AI functionality of the Galaxy A series -- to increase market share. It will also reinforce the AI capabilities of tablets and wearables and expand the Galaxy ecosystem with the launch of products with new form-factors, including extended reality (XR) and TriFold devices, and contribute to maintaining solid profitability despite market uncertainties and rising bill of materials (BOM) costs. The DS Division posted KRW 27.9 trillion in consolidated revenue, down 2% YoY, but up 11% QoQ and KRW 0.4 trillion in operating profit, down 93.84% YoY and down 63.63% QoQ for the second quarter. Samsung said that it proactively addressed server demand by expanding HBM3E sales, as well as portion of high-density DDR5 products. NAND inventory reduced significantly via server SSD sales expansion as a result of the prompt resumption of delayed datacenter projects Earnings impacted by one-off costs such as inventory value adjustments, etc. In H2 2025, it will actively respond to higher density trend with HBM, LPDDR5x for server, etc. Expand sales of industry-leading 128GB DDR5 and 24Gb GDDR7 for AI server. It also plans to increase high-density & high-performance SSD while accelerating the transition to 8th Generation V-NAND across all applications.

Samsung Q2 profit drops 55% on weak AI chip sales, China curbs

SEOUL (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics reported on Thursday a 55% drop in second-quarter operating profit as delays in high-bandwidth memory chip shipments and U.S. export curbs on advanced chip sales to China continued to drag on its key semiconductor division. The world's largest memory chip maker posted 4.7 trillion won ($3.37 billion) in operating profit for the April-June period, its weakest in six quarters. The result was roughly in line with its earlier estimate of 4.6 trillion won, which had disappointed investors. Its revenue rose 0.7% to 74.6 trillion won, in line with its earlier estimate of 74 trillion won. Samsung's chip division posted a profit of 400 billion won during the quarter, down from 6.5 trillion won a year earlier, marking the first time in six quarters that the figure has dropped below the 1 trillion won mark. Samsung said in a statement that inventory value adjustments to memory chips and one-off costs from the impact of U.S. export restrictions on sales to China on its contract chipmaking business lowered the division's profit. Prolonged weakness in its financial performance has deepened investor concerns over the South Korean tech giant's ability to catch up with smaller rivals in developing high-bandwidth memory chips sold to customers including Nvidia and used in artificial intelligence data centres. Samsung reported earnings just days after Tesla said it had signed a $16.5 billion deal to source chips from the tech giant, a move that could bolster the South Korean company's struggling foundry business that makes chips on contract. Shares of Samsung Electronics were trading up 0.7% in the morning trade, in line with the benchmark KOSPI's 0.7% rise. ($1 = 1,393.4100 won) (Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Joyce Lee; Editing by Jamie Freed)

Samsung Expects AI-Fueled Earnings Improvement After Profit Drop -- 2nd Update

Samsung Electronics said it expects earnings to regain momentum on AI-fueled demand for technology products later this year, after reporting weaker quarterly earnings on its sluggish chip business. The world's largest maker of memory chips and smartphones said Thursday that its semiconductor earnings fell sequentially for a fourth consecutive quarter, hurt by the effect of U.S. curbs on chip exports to China and delayed sales of advanced high-bandwidth-memory products to Nvidia for artificial-intelligence applications. Samsung executives said on an earnings call Thursday that demand for powerful computing chips, particularly those used in AI data servers, will likely accelerate. "Information-technology market conditions are expected to gradually improve, driven by growth in the AI and robotics industries," Samsung said in a statement. Samsung Chief Financial Officer Sooncheol Park welcomed the U.S.-South Korean trade deal overnight that included a lowered 15% blanket tariff on Korean goods, saying it reduced uncertainty. He said Samsung is closely monitoring the U.S.'s follow-up actions, especially on semiconductors and other IT sectors. In a major win for its U.S. foundry business, Samsung earlier this week reached a $16.5 billion deal to manufacture AI chips for Tesla. Samsung Vice President Mijung Noh in the call said he expects to secure additional orders from other large customers but didn't disclose additional details. Contrary to Samsung's optimistic outlook, second-quarter net profit declined 48% from a year earlier to 5.116 trillion won, equivalent to $3.67 billion. That missed the 5.740 trillion won consensus estimate of analysts in a FactSet poll. Compared with the previous quarter, profit fell 38%. Revenue rose 0.7% to 74.566 trillion won, while operating profit dropped 55% to 4.676 trillion won, both largely in line with the company's preliminary estimates. Samsung booked one-off inventory-value losses on unsold advanced chips due to U.S. export controls on China. Operating profit at the chip segment slumped to 400 billion won from 1.1 trillion won in the previous quarter. Earnings at its smartphone business weakened, with the segment's operating profit falling to 3.1 trillion won from the previous quarter's 4.3 trillion won. Shares in Samsung were 1.65% lower after the downbeat results, paring its year-to-date gain to 34%--largely in line with the advance in the benchmark Kospi. Samsung said it expects memory-chip prices to rebound later this year largely on brisk AI-led demand for semiconductors, personal computers and mobile devices. Some analysts bet that Samsung could stage a strong earnings recovery from the third quarter. In a recent note, HSBC analysts Ricky Seo and Hankil Chang said the technology giant will likely gain from a rise in memory-chip prices, seasonally strong demand for organic light-emitting diode panels, and its long-delayed supply of HBM3E products to customers. Samsung has been lagging behind its smaller chip-making rivals, SK Hynix and Micron Technology, in supplying HBM3E products to Nvidia. Samsung said Thursday that its HBM3E shipments to other customers continued to rise, with the fifth-generation chips expected to account for more than 95% of its HBM shipments in the second half. It said it has already sent more advanced HBM4 sample products to customers for testing and is preparing for a possible surge in demand for the sixth-generation chips next year. Its struggling foundry business also scored a much-needed deal this week, with Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk confirming that Samsung's new facilities in Texas will be dedicated to making the U.S. electric-vehicle giant's next-generation AI6 chip. The AI6 is intended to be used in humanoid robots, self-driving cars and AI data centers. With the new chip plant expected to start operations as early as the second half of 2026, Samsung could get an estimated $2.4 billion annual revenue boost from 2027, thanks to the Tesla contract, Citigroup analysts led by Peter Lee wrote in a research note. The deal could help Samsung narrow the gap with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the foundry business--making chips on a contract basis for customers such as Nvidia, Qualcomm and Apple, which design chips but don't have their own factories to produce them. Industry tracker TrendForce, a research firm, estimated that TSMC's share of global foundry revenue increased to 67.6% in the first quarter of 2025 from 67.1% in the previous quarter. Samsung's share fell to 7.7% from 8.1% over the same period. "Samsung's foundry business is at a critical juncture between survival and profitability," said Neil Shah, vice president of research at Counterpoint Research. "It needs to attract more customers so it can support the significant investments in advanced foundry nodes while competing with TSMC, which has performed better on yields and performance profitability."

Samsung Expects Earnings Improvement After Profit Drop -- Update

Samsung Electronics posted lower quarterly net profit, dragged down by its sluggish semiconductor business, but expects earnings to regain momentum in the second half of this year. The world's largest maker of memory chips and smartphones said Thursday that its semiconductor earnings fell sequentially for a fourth consecutive quarter, hurt by the effect of U.S. curbs on chip exports to China and delayed sales of advanced high-bandwidth-memory products to Nvidia for artificial-intelligence applications. Second-quarter net profit fell 48% from the year-earlier period, to 5.116 trillion won, equivalent to $3.67 billion, missing the 5.740 trillion won consensus estimate of analysts in a FactSet poll. Compared with the previous quarter, profit fell 38%. Revenue rose 0.7% from a year earlier, to 74.566 trillion won. Operating profit dropped 55%, to 4.676 trillion won, as the company booked one-off inventory-value losses on unsold advanced chips due to U.S. export controls on China. Both figures were largely in line with the company's preliminary estimates. Earnings at the chip segment more than halved to 400 billion won from the previous quarter's 1.1 trillion won. Earnings at its smartphone business also turned soft, with the segment's operating profit falling to 3.1 trillion won from the previous quarter's 4.3 trillion won. Samsung maintained an optimistic outlook despite the downbeat results. Earnings could improve gradually as the AI boom fuels demand for semiconductors, personal computers and mobile devices in the second half of the year, it said. Shares in Samsung have risen around 36% so far this year, largely in line with the gain in the benchmark Kospi. Some analysts bet that Samsung could stage a strong earnings recovery from the third quarter. In a recent note, HSBC analysts Ricky Seo and Hankil Chang said the technology giant will likely gain from a rise in memory-chip prices, seasonally strong demand for organic light-emitting diode panels, and its long-delayed supply of HBM3E products to customers. Samsung has been lagging behind its smaller chip-making rivals, SK Hynix and Micron Technology, in supplying HBM3E products to Nvidia. In a major win for its U.S. foundry business, Samsung earlier this week reached a $16.5 billion deal to manufacture AI chips for Tesla. Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk confirmed the deal on X, saying that Samsung's new facilities in Texas will be dedicated to making the U.S. electric-vehicle giant's next-generation AI6 chip. The AI6 is intended to be used in humanoid robots, self-driving cars and AI data centers. With the new chip plant expected to start operations as early as the second half of 2026, Samsung could get an estimated $2.4 billion annual revenue boost from 2027, thanks to the Tesla contract, Citigroup analysts led by Peter Lee wrote in a research note. The deal could help Samsung narrow the gap with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the foundry business--making chips on a contract basis for customers such as Nvidia, Qualcomm and Apple, which design chips but don't have their factories to produce them. Industry tracker TrendForce, a research firm, estimated that TSMC's share of global foundry revenue increased to 67.6% in the first quarter of 2025 from 67.1% in the previous quarter. Samsung's share fell to 7.7% from 8.1% over the same period. "Samsung's foundry business is at a critical juncture between survival and profitability," said Neil Shah, vice president of research at Counterpoint Research. "It needs to attract more customers so it can support the significant investments in advanced foundry nodes while competing with TSMC, which has performed better on yields and performance profitability."

Samsung Electronics Posts Lower 2Q Net Profit, Weighed by Chip Business

Samsung Electronics posted lower quarterly net profit, dragged down by its sluggish semiconductor business, but said it expects earnings to regain momentum in the second half of this year. The world's largest maker of memory chips and smartphones said Thursday that its semiconductor earnings fell sequentially for a fourth consecutive quarter, hurt by the effect of U.S. curbs on chip exports to China and its delayed sales of advanced high-bandwidth-memory products to Nvidia for artificial-intelligence applications. Second-quarter net profit fell 48% from the year-earlier period, to 5.116 trillion won, equivalent to $3.67 billion, missing the 5.740 trillion won consensus estimate of analysts in a FactSet poll. Compared with the previous quarter, profit fell 38%. Revenue rose 0.7% from a year ago, to 74.566 trillion won. Operating profit dropped 55%, to 4.676 trillion won, as the company booked one-off inventory-value losses on unsold advanced chips due to U.S. export controls on China. Both figures were largely in line with the company's preliminary estimates. Earnings at the chip segment more than halved to 400 billion won from the previous quarter's 1.1 trillion won. Earnings at its smartphone business also turned soft, with the segment's operating profit falling to 3.1 trillion won from the previous quarter's 4.3 trillion won. Samsung maintained an optimistic outlook despite the downbeat results. Earnings could improve gradually as the AI boom fuels demand for semiconductors, personal computers and mobile devices in the second half of the year, it said. Shares in Samsung have risen 36% so far this year, largely in line with the gain in the benchmark Kospi.