Samsung to cease sale of home appliances on Chinese mainland

Global electronics maker Samsung announced on Wednesday that it is to cease sales of all home appliance products on the Chinese mainland market.

The move covers all home appliance categories, including televisions and monitors. Smartphone products will continue to be sold as usual.

In a statement published on its official website, the company said the decision was made "after careful consideration" in the face of a rapidly changing market environment. According to its latest first-quarter earnings report, the South Korean firm's Visual Display (VD) and Digital Appliances (DA) divisions posted combined revenue of 14.3 trillion won ($9.86 billion), down 1 percent year-on-year and 3 percent quarter-on-quarter. Operating profit for the segment fell 33.3 percent year-on-year to 0.2 trillion won.

Market data also points to a shrinking presence in China. According to market consultancy AVC Revo, as of April 5, Samsung's offline market share in China's color TV, refrigerator and washing machine segments stood at 3.62 percent, 0.41 percent and 0.38 percent, ranking fifth, 14th and 15th respectively, indicating the multinational has largely retreated from the ranks of leading brands in these categories.

Samsung has stated that, for customers who have already purchased its home appliances, it will continue to provide standardized after-sales services in accordance with relevant regulations.

lijiaying@chinadaily.com.cn