Samsung optimistic as chip, phone buyers rush to beat tariffs

STORY: Samsung Electronics is set to beat forecasts, possibly with a little unintended help from Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The South Korean tech giant said Tuesday that operating profit would hit almost $4.5 billion for the January-March quarter.

That’s well above estimates by analysts, who had predicted a big drop.

One factor may have been buyers rushing to beat the imposition of a 25% levy on exports to the U.S., due to kick in from Wednesday.

Though memory chip prices dipped over the period, one analyst told Reuters that it looked like volumes had been boosted by customers trying to stock up.

It may have been a similar story for smartphones, with signs that U.S. retailers put in big orders ahead of the tariffs.

Now analysts say Samsung could see a corresponding dip in sales over the coming months, if customers really have stocked up.

The company also faces questions over its AI chips.

Samsung has struggled to supply U.S. champion Nvidia with high-end silicon.

It has also warned of a hit from Washington’s restrictions on sales to China, its biggest market.

Earlier in the year, Samsung executives were forced to apologize over the firm’s struggles in the AI market, where it’s been lagging local rival SK Hynix.

On Tuesday, the focus was on the better-than-expected earnings numbers though.

Samsung shares were up around 1% by early afternoon following the figures.

The company will now release detailed earnings at the end of the month.