Samsung Guides To About $145.4 Billion (KRW 195 Trillion) In Q3 2026 Sales

Samsung reported Q3 2026 earnings with $80.6B operating profit and $146.4B revenue, driven by semiconductor sales. The global chip market grew 102% YoY in H1 2026, with WSTS forecasting $1.655T revenue for 2026 and $2.1T for 2027. Samsung's profits exceeded the entire semiconductor industry's annual profit from three years ago, highlighting strong demand for AI-related chips like HBM.

Samsung forecasts a 783% increase in Q3 operating profit to 107.4 trillion won ($80B), driven by surging AI memory demand. Revenue is projected at 195 trillion won, up 127% YoY. Shares fell 2.4% as profit missed analyst estimates. Rising memory costs are pressuring IT budgets and hardware manufacturers.

Samsung Electronics has secured nearly 80% of next year’s memory semiconductor output under long-term supply agreements with major tech companies like Nvidia, Google, and Microsoft. The trend is spreading to AI components, with Samsung Electro-Mechanics and others signing long-term deals for parts like MLCCs. Industry officials note that Big Tech is prioritizing stable supply chains, driving a shift from short-term transactions to long-term agreements.

Samsung plans to cut smartphone production by up to 30% in Q4 due to a 175% YoY surge in memory chip costs, according to industry sources. The price of 12GB LPDDR5X mobile DRAM chips has risen to $145-$146, with further increases expected. Samsung's mobile division faces profitability challenges as it must buy components at elevated market rates. Apple has also reportedly reduced iPhone 18 Pro production by 15-20%.

Samsung Electronics reported a record quarterly operating profit of 107.4 trillion won ($74.6B), driven by high demand for memory semiconductors. Revenue reached 195 trillion won, up 126.6% YoY, with profits increasing 782.5% YoY. This marks the fourth consecutive quarter of record profits, attributed to AI-driven demand.

Samsung's 12-layer HBM4E high-bandwidth memory passed quality validation from NVIDIA and major data center operators. This approval supports Samsung's push in AI accelerator memory solutions.