Samsung overtakes Nokia as world's top handset maker

By Lim Yun Suk | Posted: 27 April 2012 1918 hrs

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics has rung in record earnings for the first quarter of this year, driven by strong sales of smartphones.

To top the numbers, industry experts believe it has overtaken Nokia as the world's top seller of cellphones, and has outsold Apple in the smartphone space.

Samsung, the world's biggest supplier of memory chips, booked a record net profit of almost US$4.5 billion for the first three months of this year, driven mostly by strong numbers from its mobile business.

Samsung did not give a breakdown of its handset shipments. According to industry experts, it now sells more mobile phones than any of its competitors - pushing Nokia down from the position it has held for 14 years.

While Nokia sold some 83 million handsets in Q1, Samsung is believed to have sold some 93.5 million.

And in terms of smartphones, research firm Strategy Analytics says, Samsung's smartphone sales totalled 44.5 million handsets - outstripping Apple's 35 million.

Kim Jin Young, head of Roa Consulting, said: "Samsung did very well with its fast-follower strategy. It quickly caught up with Apple very quickly and very well. It has now overcome that fast-follower period and is now aiming to become a market dominator."

Meanwhile, earnings from its TV and home appliances business also posted strong gains, while its chip business saw profits decline by more than half because of falling memory chip prices.

Samsung is expected to launch its new Galaxy Phone next week in London. Analysts are predicting this momentum to continue into the second quarter.