LG Electronics reported first-quarter sales down 0.4 percent to KRW 13.16 trillion, while the net result plunged to a loss of KRW 16 billion from a profit of KRW 675 billion a year earlier. EBITDA nearly halved to KRW 429 billion, and operating profit fell 73 percent to KRW 131 billion. Operating profit was down across all its divisions, while only home appliances, air conditioning and energy products showed sales growth. At the Mobile division, revenues fell 8.3 percent year-on-year to KRW 2.91 trillion. The operating result moved to a loss of KRW 101 billion from a profit of KRW 29 billion a year earlier, but was still an improvement on the past three quarters. Handset sales were down 9.2 percent from a year ago and 14.3 percent versus Q4 to KRW 2.85 trillion. Shipments declined 20 percent from Q4 and 10 percent year-on-year to 24.5 million phones. LG said shipments increased in China, the Middle East and Africa, but other regions declined due to efforts to improve product mix and seasonality. The company expects competition in the smartphone market to intensify, and will work on boosting its own share of the market while lowering overhead costs.
