Major firms reap better-than-expected Q3 earnings amid pandemic

All News 10:34 November 08, 2020

SEOUL, Nov. 8 (Yonhap) -- Major listed firms in South Korea reported better-than-expected earnings in the third quarter, raising hopes for a quick recovery from the pandemic-hit economy, data showed Sunday.

The combined operating income of 251 listed firms that disclosed earnings as of Friday totaled 32.6 trillion won (US$29.1 billion) for the July-September period on a consolidated basis, up 26.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by financial info provider Yonhap Infomax.

Of the 115 companies that brokerage houses have issued earnings estimates for, 75 logged estimate-beating profits, based on the average earnings forecast by three or more local securities companies, the data showed. Of the 75 outperformers, 53 beat brokerage consensus by more than 10 percent.

Samsung Electronics Co., the country's most valued firm, delivered forecast-beating third-quarter earnings. Its operating profit soared 58.1 percent on-year to 12.3 trillion won, surpassing the market forecast of 10.6 trillion won.

LG Chem Ltd., a leading EV battery maker, reaped record-high earnings, with its operating profit spiking 158.7 percent on-year to 902.1 billion won, far beyond the market forecast of 731.2 billion won.

Another EV battery maker, Samsung SDI Co., reported 267.4 billion won in operating profit, around 30 percent more than forecast.

"(South Korean firms') earnings recovery is picking up at a surprisingly fast pace in the third quarter, in contrast to the nightmarish first half," Kyobo Securities analyst Kim Hyung-ryeol said.