Samsung reports record revenue for first quarter, reports market pressures

Samsung Electronics posted a 43% increase in first-quarter revenue to 133.9 trillion Korean won, its highest quarterly performance, despite weak demand for displays and telecommunications.

The company revealed this in its first quarter 2026 financial results released on Friday, highlighting solid overall growth across all major business segments.

Operating profit also hit a record 57.2 trillion won for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, underscoring strong earnings momentum despite broader market challenges.

Samsung said some business units faced pressures stemming from weak demand, seasonal slowdowns, rising tariffs and rising operating costs during the period.

Samsung Display Corporation reported weaker earnings in its small and medium-sized display segment, due to seasonal weakness in smartphone demand and higher memory prices.

The company expects continued uncertainty and low visibility in the display market for the second half of 2026.

“In the second quarter of 2026, the small and medium-sized display business will focus on sales in the relatively resilient high-end segment,” Samsung said.

It added that overall market demand remained weak despite expected resilience in premium segments.

Samsung said its Networks division posted lower earnings both on a quarterly and year-on-year basis, citing investment difficulties in the global telecommunications sector.

“In the first quarter of 2026, the networks business reported a decline in earnings due to investment difficulties,” the company said.

The digital equipment sector saw only limited earnings improvement amid rising tariffs and persistent cost pressures.

Its subsidiary Harman also posted lower earnings, reflecting rising expenses related to memory constraints and seasonal weakness in audio demand.

Despite these challenges, Samsung’s semiconductor business remained the company’s main growth driver during the quarter.

The Device Solutions Division reported revenue of 81.7 trillion won and operating profit of 53.7 trillion won, supported by strong demand for AI-related memory products.

Samsung said its memory business posted record quarterly sales and operating profits, led by products such as HBM4 chips and PCIe Gen6 SSDs.

The company added that it has begun mass sales of HBM4 and SOCAM2 products for NVIDIA’s Vera Rubin platform.

According to Samsung, demand for server memory will remain strong through 2026 as companies expand artificial intelligence and large language model services.

Samsung also reported higher sales and profits in the mobile sector following the launch of new flagship smartphones and increased sales of premium devices.

The company said it will continue to focus on AI-powered products, premium offerings and efficiency measures to support profitability amid global uncertainties.