LG Electronics said Thursday its flagship smartphone G5 shipments have exceeded 1.6 million units globally since its launch a month ago.

“We will see more than 3 million shipments in the second quarter,” the company said during a conference call when it reported a 65.5 percent surge in operating profit to 505.2 billion won ($440 million) in the first quarter from a year ago. 


Even though strong sales of home appliances, especially more lucrative premium models, elevated the company’s profits overall, the mobile business division suffered a 200 billion won deficit due to marketing costs for the G5.

The company said it could see a turnaround in the second quarter when G5 shipments, along with those of the new budget phone K Series, start to be reflected in sales.

The company predicted its quarterly sales could reach 3.6 trillion won in the second quarter, calling the figure a break-even point for the mobile business division.

The G5 is the industry’s first modular smartphone that allows users to upgrade camera and audio functions by switching different modules. Unlike earlier concerns about the tricky production, the company said it has no supply constraints.

Despite a profit surge in the first quarter, sales were down 4.5 percent to 13.9 trillion won compared to the same period last year largely due to seasonal week demand for TVs and smartphones.

Sales of the vehicle component division reported a 55 percent growth on strong performance of in-car infotainment systems but operating loss was 15.8 billion won due to increased investments, the company said. 

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)