Samsung phones are best in the West

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Samsung phones are best in the West


Samsung Electronics ranks first in mobile phone sales in the United States and Western Europe, according to global research firms Strategy Analytics and the GfK Group.

Although Nokia is still the leader in overall global market share for mobile phones, Samsung Electronics is leading the way in highly-wired, developed countries based on the success of its third generation smart phones.

In fact, Samsung’s full-touch-screen phone Star took the No.1 spot in weekly sales during the last week of July in six major European countries including the United Kingdom, France and The Netherlands.

According to reports from SA and GfK, Samsung Electronics’ market share in U.S. and Western European markets combined was 25 percent in this second quarter, having sold 22.2 million mobile phones in the two regions. The total number of handsets sold during the April-June period was 8.89 million.

On the other hand, Nokia sold a total 18.7 million handsets in these markets combined, putting it in second place with a 21.1 percent market share.

LG Electronics was third with a 16.8 percent market share. The electronics giant has shown better-than-expected earnings during the first half, especially in its import figures, as its LCD TVs and smart phones have been selling like hotcakes overseas.

However, Samsung’s domestic sales declined during the first half as the aftermath of the global economic crisis is still prevalent and the Korean telecommunications market is nearing saturation.

Samsung Electronics said yesterday that its sales for the first half of this year jumped 12.3 percent on-year, totaling 39.6 trillion won ($31.9 billion), buoyed by strong overseas demand. During the first half of 2008, the company saw 35.2 trillion won in sales.

In an official release, the company said that they attribute the rise in their first half sales to a 16.3 percent climb in exports of digital consumer and home appliance products.

The company’s exports of digital media goods, including mobile phones, computers and MP3 players, skyrocketed 46.1 percent on-year during the first half, to total 12.8 trillion won. Exports of home appliances, including washing machines and air conditioners, also saw a 46.9 percent jump in on-year sales during this first half.

Meanwhile, the company stated that its domestic sales fell 3 percent on-year during this first half, to 7.5 trillion won.



By Cho Jae-eun [jainnie@joongang.co.kr]
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