SAMSUNG EXPECTS INCREASE IN 5G CHIPS DEMAND IN 2020 BUT FEARS US-CHINA TRADE WAR AND CORONAVIRUS

Samsung Electronics Co is counting on a gradual recovery in memory chip demand from data centers and 5G smartphone makers to help it bounce back in 2020 after sliding to its worst operating profit in four years. But in a guarded outlook, the world’s biggest memory chip and smartphone maker said on Thursday it couldn’t rule out the possibility that demand growth may be curbed amid lingering tensions on US-China trade and looming fears of the economic impact of the new coronavirus outbreak in China and beyondThe conservative forecast failed to satisfy investors hoping for a brighter outlook, and the company’s shares ended down 3.2 percent, having fallen as much as 3.9 percent at one point, while the Seoul market benchmark was off 1.7 percent.