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LG Electronics posts profit in Q1 driven by appliances business

Published: 07 Apr. 2026, 15:12 Updated: 07 Apr. 2026, 19:49

An attendee passes by a display of LG evo W6 Wallpaper televisions at the LG Electronics booth during CES 2026 in Las Vegas on Jan. 7. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

LG Electronics posted a profit for the January-March period after recording its first quarterly operating loss in the last quarter of 2025, driven by strong performance in its mainstay home appliance business.

Operating profit for the first quarter came to 1.67 trillion won ($1.1 billion), compared to 1.25 trillion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday.

Sales rose 4.4 percent to 23.73 trillion won, marking a record high for a first quarter. Net profit data was not available. The company will release its final earnings report during its earnings briefing later this month.

In the fourth quarter of last year, LG Electronics posted an operating loss of 109 billion won, driven mainly by weak market demand and one-off costs from its restructuring program.

The company said its home appliance solution division maintained growth by bolstering its subscription business and focusing on the premium segment. It also strengthened its market dominance by diversifying its revenue structure by expanding sales channels, including online sales and home appliance subscriptions.

The vehicle solution business improved its profitability compared to a year earlier, LG Electronics said, without providing details. The recent weakness of the Korean won against the greenback provided some positive effects on the segment, as most of its clients are based overseas, it added.

“Profitability also increased compared to the previous year, driven by active cost structure improvement efforts," LG Electronics said.

Still, headwinds remain.

Although the media and entertainment solutions business returned to profitability after a loss in the fourth quarter of 2025, it continues to struggle amid weak demand in the TV market.

LG Electronics said the eco solution business experienced a decline in sales and operating profit in the first quarter from a year earlier amid market uncertainties, adding it will continue efforts to target demand related to AI data centers.

For the remainder of 2026, LG Electronics said it plans to continue cutting costs to address rising raw material prices. The company will continue fostering future growth engines, including home robots and related accessories, it added.

Despite strong earnings, key risk factors, including delayed recovery in TV demand and moves by the United States to expand tariffs on finished steel products, are increasing uncertainty over its future performance. The Iran war is also considered a risk factor.

LG Electronics' Tennessee factory [LG ELECTRONICS]

"Amid the growing cost burden from geopolitical factors, including the war in the Middle East, macroeconomic instability and rising raw material and logistics costs, LG Electronics plans to minimize the impact by taking flexible and pre-emptive measures," the company said in a release.

This year, the company plans to lead with a differentiated television lineup, including OLED TVs, premium LCD TVs, such as micro RGB models, and lifestyle TVs.

Update April 7: Regulatory filing numbers added.

BY KIM JI-YE, YONHAP [[email protected]]