SEOUL, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Samsung Electronics' second-quarter operating profit missed market expectations, ending its record-breaking profit trend, a regulatory filing showed Friday.
The preliminary figure for operating profit was 14.8 trillion won (13.2 billion U.S. dollars) in the April-June quarter, missing the market consensus of about 15.3 trillion won (13.7 billion U.S. dollars).
It was up 5.2 percent from a year earlier, but Samsung ended its record-breaking profit that had lasted for the past four quarters.
From the previous quarter, the profit was down 5.4 percent, marking the first quarterly fall in seven quarters.
Revenue was 58 trillion won (52 billion U.S. dollars) in the June quarter, down 4.9 percent from a year earlier. From the previous quarter, it was also down 4.2 percent.
Net income will be announced later this year after external audit and the board of directors' approval.
Market watchers saw slumping businesses of display panel and mobile phone negatively influence Samsung earnings.
Samsung's mobile phone division was also estimated to have recorded a slide in operating profit on lower average selling price and higher marketing cost.
Samsung was believed to have sold less than 10 million Galaxy S9 smartphones in the second quarter, slightly down from the previous quarter despite rising marking cost and lower product price.
Samsung's chip-making unit was believed to have kept a record-breaking trend in operating profit thanks to higher DRAM memory chip price and strong demand for semiconductors.
The chip-making division's operating profit surpassed 10 trillion won (9 billion U.S. dollars) in the fourth quarter of last year and 11 trillion won (9.8 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter of this year, respectively, for the first time.
Market expectations for the second-quarter profit was set at around 12 trillion won (10.7 billion U.S. dollars) for the chip-making business.
Samsung's consumer electronics business was believed to have recorded a growth in operating profit in the quarter given strong demand for TVs ahead of the 2018 World Cup and lower display panel price.
For the July-September quarter, market watchers forecast Samsung's operating profit would top 17 trillion won (15 billion U.S. dollars), resuming a record-breaking trend.
Demand for DRAM memory chips was expected to get stronger in the quarter for seasonal reasons amid higher product prices.
OLED panel demand was forecast to grow in the third quarter as Apple, Samsung's archrival in smartphone and a key customer of electronic components, would increase production of new iPhones.
The local currency's depreciation to the U.S. dollar was predicted to improve Samsung's profitability in overseas sale.
