SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics, the world's No.1 memory chip maker, said it was on course to report a record quarterly profit, powered by robust sales of memory chips and flat screens in a strong consumer electronics market.
Samsung <005930.KS>, also the world's largest maker of flat screen TVs, estimated its April-June operating profit at a median 5.0 trillion won ($4.09 billion), higher than a consensus forecast of 4.8 trillion won polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
That would beat the previous record of 4.41 trillion won reported in the preceding quarter and almost double the year-ago quarter's 2.67 trillion won.
But earnings growth may falter in the second half as a strong price recovery in its mainstay memory chips loses steam amid an increase in supplies.
Though Samsung is leading rivals such as Sony Corp <6758.T> and Elpida Memory <6665.T> in earnings recovery, its emerging smartphone business faces a strong headwind from Apple Inc's
(Reporting by Miyoung Kim; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner and Anshuman Daga)