LG Electronics Australia reports AU$11.8m profit for 2016
LG Electronics Australia has announced that profit gained from ordinary activities after tax was AU$11.8 million for the full-year ended December 31, 2016, a slight drop from the AU$11.9 million recorded in the previous corresponding period.
The South Korean electronics giant also reported total revenue of AU$713 million in 2016, up 2.5 percent from the AU$695 million reported in the previous year.
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Gross profit came in at AU$139 million, an increase of 4.8 percent from the previous corresponding period.
LG Electronics Australia also paid AU$5 million in income tax in 2016, higher than the AU$4.8 million paid in 2015.
The company's global full-year operating profit for the period ended December 31, 2016 was 1.34 trillion won, a 12.2 percent increase from the previous corresponding period. The company attributes this to the growth of its home appliance and air solutions and home entertainment businesses, which posted their strongest operating profit in 2016.
LG Electronics Inc admitted, however, that its profitability was hampered by losses in its mobile communications and vehicle components businesses in Q4 2016. The company reported a net loss of 258 billion won during that quarter, saying "weak sales of the G5 smartphone and higher marketing investments" contributed to the loss, despite the success of its V20 smartphone.
While LG stumbled last year with the modularity of the G5, it came back strong with the LG G6. In its 2016 global financial results, the company predicted that the introduction of its next G Series phone and mass-tier devices in Q2 2017 will boost its mobile communications business in 2017.
In a bid to strengthen its mobile communications business, earlier this year LG also announced that it would adopt machine learning, big data analytics, and artificial intelligence technologies so that it can provide remote after-sales services for its smartphone users.
The company said by using these technologies, app diagnoses will improve over time, data will be processed faster, and LG will be able to offer services that are customised for the individual consumer.
LG is also expanding its IoT scope this year with the launch of a new line-up of intelligent robots, including a home robot that doubles as a smart home gateway and intelligent home notification centre.