Samsung posts first-ever quarterly loss amid global recession

(ATTN: UPDATES with more figures; CHANGES headline)
SEOUL, Jan. 23 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest maker of
computer memory chips, said Friday it posted its first-ever quarterly loss in the
final quarter of 2008 amid the deepening global economic downturn.

Samsung lost 20 billion won (US$12 million) in the October-December period last
year, compared with a profit of 2.21 trillion won for the same period a year ago,
the company said in a regulatory filing.
Fourth-quarter operating loss was at 94 billion won, compared with a profit of
2.8 trillion won the previous year, Samsung Electronics said. Sales fell to 18.45
trillion won from 20 trillion won.
Samsung, which is also the world's largest maker of liquid-crystal displays and
the No. 2 maker of mobile phones, has been hurt by sinking demand for
semiconductors, mobile phones and other consumer electronics as the global
economic recession has sapped demand for these products.
Until now, Samsung had never posted operating or net losses since it first
started announcing quarterly earnings results in 2000.
The company's first-ever quarterly losses underline how the nation's biggest
company is struggling with the global economic slump, analysts say.
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