Samsung flags Q1 tenfold operating profit surge amid memory bounce

SEOUL -- Samsung Electronics said Friday that its operating profit probably soared by more than 10 times in the first quarter from a year earlier, amid expectations that its semiconductor unit may turn a profit for the first time in more than a year and as smartphone sales improve.

In its earnings guidance, the world's biggest maker of memory chips announced that it expects operating profit to have reached 6.6 trillion won ($4.9 billion) in the January to March period, up 931.3% from the same quarter last year. It pegged revenue, meanwhile, as rising 11.4% to 71 trillion won.