LG Electronics Reports 53.2% Decline in Q4 Operating Profit
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Seoul, Jan 8 (NationPress) LG Electronics, the top home appliance manufacturer in South Korea, announced on Wednesday that its estimated operating profit for the fourth quarter has fallen by more than 53 percent year-on-year due to ongoing global economic uncertainties.
The operating profit for the three months concluding in December is projected to be 146.1 billion won ($100.7 million), down from 312.5 billion won during the same timeframe in 2023, according to a regulatory filing from the company.
Conversely, sales saw a slight increase of 0.2 percent to reach 22.77 trillion won. The details regarding net earnings remain undisclosed, as reported by Yonhap news agency.
Throughout 2024, LG Electronics anticipates its operating profit to have decreased by 6.1 percent on a year-over-year basis, amounting to 3.43 trillion won, while sales are expected to rise by 6.7 percent, reaching a record 87.74 trillion won.
The decline in operating profit is attributed to rising shipping costs and one-off expenses resulting from stock consolidation initiatives, though the company's flagship home appliances division has demonstrated strong performance.
For the second consecutive year in 2024, LG Electronics' home appliances unit is projected to achieve annual sales exceeding 30 trillion won.
The final earnings report will be disclosed later this month.
Additionally, the company has formed a strategic alliance with Microsoft, intending to spearhead innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) by merging its consumer insights across various devices with the advanced AI technologies offered by the U.S. tech giant.
As part of this partnership, both organizations will work together to develop and enhance AI agents applicable in a range of environments, including homes, vehicles, hotels, and offices, as stated by LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan during a press event at CES 2025 in Las Vegas.
LG Electronics is integrating Microsoft's speech recognition and synthesis technologies into its AI home hub initiative, allowing the AI to comprehend a variety of customer accents in diverse contexts.
Moreover, LG Electronics and Microsoft are set to co-create a new AI agent that not only engages with customers but also anticipates their needs and preferences.
