The South Korean tech organization said Tuesday that its fourth-quarter working benefit is set to plunge nearly 30% from a year sooner. It blamed the sharp drop on “lackluster demand” for its memory chips and “intensifying competition” in the smartphone industry.
Samsung’s direction comes after Apple (AAPL) set off alerts a week ago by notice that it will sell less iPhones than previously expected, fundamentally due to disappointing demand in China amid an ongoing trade war with the United States.
Samsung, the world’s biggest smartphone maker, didn’t mention China specifically in its income direction on Tuesday, however it said “mounting” macroeconomic uncertainties are affecting its business.
China, the world’s biggest smartphone market, is experiencing a deepening economic slowdown that’s affecting businesses around the globe. And in addition selling its very own phones, Samsung supplies key parts like chips and display screens to other major device manufacturers. Apple’s most recent iPhones utilize Samsung’s OLED screens.
The South Korean organization said it anticipates working benefit for the fourth quarter of 2018 to come in at 10.8 trillion won ($9.6 billion), contrasted and about 15.2 trillion won ($13.5 billion) in a similar period a year sooner. It predicted deals will drop about 11% to 59 trillion won ($52.5 billion).
It cautioned the weak performance is probably going to keep, predicting its earnings will “remain subdued in the first quarter of 2019 due to difficult conditions for the memory business.”
Analysts were not astounded by Samsung’s dreary conjecture. “There is obviously the competition from the Chinese players that is limiting the growth of Samsung in many markets including the high-growth ones like India and South East Asia,” said Kiranjeet Kaur, a Singapore-based analyst with research firm IDC.
As indicated by IDC’s most recent report, Samsung still sells the most gadgets globally, however experienced a 13% decrease in deals in the third quarter of 2018, contrasted and a similar period a year sooner. Chinese smartphone producer Huawei, then, posted 33% development.
And while many smartphone makers still use Samsung as a provider, memory chip costs have “passed their peak days,” Kaur included.
Samsung will report full fourth-quarter results toward the finish of this current month. Paula Hancocks contributed to this report.