Samsung released a dismal preliminary earnings report Thursday night, which market-watchers are blaming on both U.S.-China trade tensions and internal missteps.
The South Korean company reports that profits are likely down more than half of what they were at the same time last year, with an anticipated operating profit now ranging between 6.4 and 6.6 trillion KRW ($5.5 to 5.6 billion USD).
While the Trump administration’s effective ban on telecom giant Huawei left the company’s chip supply business struggling, Samsung is also wrestling with issues in its smartphone division.
The rollout of the Galaxy Fold, the new smartphone in its flagship line, was less than stellar. After reviewers reported severe flaws with the near-$2,000 device, Samsung was forced to redesign the phone and delay its launch.
"That was expensive to innovate, and it didn’t work," John Jannarone, the editor-in-chief of IPO Edge, told Cheddar.
While the company has diversified across a wide range of electronic devices and hardware, Jannarone says he has particular concerns about Samsung’s deep investments in smartphones. "Unless you're Apple, these phones are all basically interchangeable. There’s a huge glut of supply."
One bright spot in Samsung’s mobile business is that Huawei’s exclusion from the American mobile phone market could make more room for Samsung’s products.
More welcome news in early reports is an $800 million reimbursement from Apple ($AAPL), after the Cupertino-based tech giant missed previously agreed-upon sales target, according to analysts that spoke to Reuters.
In the immediate fallout from the report, Samsung share prices were trading down nearly a percent on the Korea Futures Exchange.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
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