Samsung flags eight-fold jump in Q1 profit as AI chip demand drives up prices

Published Tue, Apr 7, 2026 · 07:35 AM

[SEOUL] Samsung Electronics on Tuesday projected a record-high first-quarter operating profit from a year earlier, beating expectations as booming demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure caused supply bottlenecks and drove chip prices higher.

The world’s largest memory chipmaker estimated an operating profit of 57.2 trillion won (S$48.7 billion) for the January to March period, compared with an LSEG SmartEstimate of 40.6 trillion won and a more than eight-fold jump from 6.69 trillion won a year earlier.

The preliminary results nearly triple Samsung’s previous record quarterly operating profit of 20 trillion won, reached in the October to December quarter last year.

Samsung said its revenue was expected to grow 68 per cent to 133 trillion won in the January to March period. REUTERS