Samsung Electronics on the up in Vietnam after lackluster 2023

Four Vietnamese subsidiaries of South Korean giant Samsung Electronics reported combined revenues of KRW21,983.9 billion ($15.96 billion) in the first quarter of 2024, up 4.7% year-on-year, and post-tax profits of KRW1,583 billion ($1.15 billion), up 12.5%.

According to Samsung’s interim business report for the period, Samsung Electronics Vietnam Thai Nguyen (SEVT), headquartered in the eponymous northern province, was the best performer. Its revenue rose 28.1% to KRW11,035.7 billion ($8.01 billion), while its post-tax profit was up 222.7% to KRW955.2 billion ($693.7 million).

SEVT’s revenue was the highest of Samsung globally, followed by the U.S.-based Samsung Electronics America, Inc. and China-based Shanghai Samsung Semiconductor Co., Ltd.

Samsung Display Vietnam (SDV), located in the northern province of Bac Ninh, posted post-tax profit of KRW167.9 billion ($121.9 million) on revenue of KRW3,580.2 billion ($2.6 billion), down 63.7% and 37.1% year-on-year, respectively.

Samsung Electronics Vietnam (SEV), also based in Bac Ninh, earned revenue of KRW5,682.4 billion ($4.13 billion) and post-tax profit of KRW404.8 billion ($294 million), up 9.5% but down 10.1% year-on-year, respectively.

Samsung Electronics HCMC CE Complex (SEHC), located in Ho Chi Minh City, saw its revenue climb 12.6% year-on-year to KRW1,685.6 billion ($1.22 billion), but its post-tax profit fell 72.3% to KRW55.1 billion ($40 million).

Globally, Samsung Electronics earned total revenue of $54.14 billion, an increase of 12.8% year-on-year, while its post-tax profit was up 329% to $5.09 billion.

Samsung entered Vietnam in 2008 with a mobile phone factory in the northern province of Bac Ninh and has been expanding its operations in Thai Nguyen, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City ever since. It now operates six plants, one distribution arm, and an R&D center.

The Korean chaebol made an extra investment of $1.2 billion in 2023, lifting its tally in Vietnam to $22.4 billion, Samsung Vietnam CEO Choi Joo Ho told Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang at a meeting in March. Samsung plans to invest an additional $1 billion in the Southeast Asian country annually, the executive added.

In May, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang affirmed that Vietnam should facilitate foreign-invested enterprises, especially electronics giants like Samsung, LG and, Intel, to conduct on-the-job training to bolster the country's digitalization and green transformation progress.

Four Vietnamese subsidiaries of Samsung Electronics reported revenues of KRW81,146.7 billion ($60.83 billion) in 2023, down 11.83% year-on-year; and after-tax profits of KRW5,263.1 billion ($3.95 billion), down 13.09%.