Samsung’s trouble isn’t just limited to its losing grip as the leader of the global chip market; the tech giant’s operations in India have halted as a workers strike shows no signs of dying down
Samsung Electronics' profit increased nearly four times in the third quarter to a record 9.1 trillion compared to 2.43 trillion in the same period last year. The company released the results on October 8, highlighting a jump of 274 per cent in earnings. Despite the high profit, the chipmaker apologised for falling short of market expectations, particularly for not meeting the predicted target of 10.3 trillion by LSEG SmartEstimate, according to Reuters.
The company said the earnings suffered due to stiff competition from Chinese chip rivals, who increased supply of ‘legacy” products. Additionally, the chipmaker acknowledged that it is struggling to maintain its technological competitiveness, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence.
“We have caused concerns about our technical competitiveness, with some talking about the crisis facing Samsung and as leaders of the business, we take full responsibility for this,” said Young Hyun Jun, Vice Chairman, Device Solutions Division, Samsung Electronics.
Although the Korean tech giant witnessed an increase in profits, it is struggling to cash in on strong demand for chips used in artificial intelligence servers. But that’s not all; in India, the company for nearly a month has been in the spotlight as its workers’ protests are not dying down.
Samsung India tried to iron out the contentions with its workers and announced the signing of a memorandum of agreement with the company’s workmen’s committee.
However, E Muthukumar, who is representing the Samsung India labour union (SIWU), has said no resolution has been reached between the management and union. He added the strike will continue.
The Samsung India workers have been protesting for weeks to meet three key demands, including recognition of their newly formed labour union- SIWU and a 50 per cent wage hike over the next three years.