China’s New Home Prices Post Sharpest Drop Since 2022 Amid Ongoing Property Slump 
Paramount Skydance to Acquire Warner Bros Discovery in $110 Billion Media Mega-Deal 
Pentagon Weighs Supply Chain Risk Designation for Anthropic Over Claude AI Use 
OpenAI Targets $600B Compute Spend as IPO Valuation Could Reach $1 Trillion 
Strait of Hormuz LNG Crisis Triggers Global Energy Market Shock 
USITC to Review Impact of Revoking China’s PNTR Status, Potentially Raising Tariffs on Chinese Imports 
Trump Warns Iran as Gulf Conflict Disrupts Oil Markets and Global Trade 
U.S. Stock Futures Fall as Nvidia Drops Despite Strong Earnings; Netflix Jumps 9% 
OpenAI Pentagon AI Contract Adds Safeguards Amid Anthropic Dispute 
xAI’s Grok Secures Pentagon Deal for Classified Military AI Systems Amid Anthropic Dispute 
BlueScope Steel Shares Drop After Rejecting Revised A$15 Billion Takeover Bid 
Nvidia Earnings Beat Expectations as AI Demand Surges, Stock Rises on Strong Revenue Outlook 
U.S.-Canada Trade Talks Resume as Trump Administration Reviews USMCA 
Nintendo Share Sale: MUFG and Bank of Kyoto to Sell Stakes in Strategic Unwinding 
Asian Markets Slide as Nvidia Earnings, U.S.-Iran Tensions and AI Valuations Weigh on Investor Sentiment 
Microsoft Gaming Leadership Shake-Up: Phil Spencer Retires, Asha Sharma Named New Xbox CEO 
Quarterly Profit Falls Amid Fierce Competition
Samsung Electronics reported a 40% decline in its chip profits quarter-over-quarter, a sharp contrast to competitors TSMC and SK Hynix, which saw earnings surge due to the AI boom. Samsung, the world’s largest memory chipmaker, smartphone, and TV producer, cautioned about limited earnings growth in the fourth quarter due to intense consumer electronics competition during the year-end peak.
AI Demand Fuels Premium Chip Focus
In its earnings statement, Samsung highlighted that while demand for memory chips in mobile and PC markets may soften, AI growth will sustain strong demand. The company plans to prioritize high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and high-density chip products, which are crucial for AI applications like those developed by Nvidia.
Third-Quarter Financial Highlights
Samsung posted an operating profit of 9.2 trillion won ($6.66 billion) for Q3, a slight improvement from 2.4 trillion won a year earlier but down from 10.4 trillion won in Q2. This result slightly exceeded the company’s preliminary estimate but fell short of market expectations. Shares of Samsung dipped 0.2% as South Korea's broader market fell by 1.3%.
Challenges in Competing with Rivals
Although Samsung’s Q3 chip earnings rose to 3.9 trillion won, they were impacted by one-time expenses and currency effects. Samsung’s slower pace in HBM commercialization compared to competitors has affected its competitiveness, as noted by Yuanta Securities analyst Baik Gil-hyun.
