South Korean tech giant LG Electronics Inc. is projected to be keeping up record earnings streak in the second half and set to report milestone $2 billion profit this year due to jump in demand for high-end TVs and home appliances by homebound consumers around the world.

According to market research firm FnGuide, LG Electronics is projected to have raised 783.6 billion won ($669.7 million) in operating income in the third quarter ending September on a consolidated basis, which would a tad 0.3 percent up from the same period a year ago. In the fourth quarter, the company is forecast to see a 308.2 percent surge in its operating income to reach 415.5 billion won.

LG Electronics had earned 1.5 trillion won in the first half – 1.09 trillion in the first quarter and 493.1 billion in the second. It releases earnings guidance for the third quarter in the second week of October.

Its stock has been flying. LG Electronics stock has surged 24.1 percent so far this year as of the same day, outperforming the country’s main Kospi index that added 3.4 percent over the same period. On Friday, it rose 3.8 percent and closed at 92,900 won.

Kim Dong-won, an analysts at KB Securities Co. forecast that LG Electronics will raise 1.3 trillion won in operating income in the July-December period this year, more than doubling the average for second half earnings over the past nine years.

No Geun-chang, a researcher at Hyundai Motor Securities, also expected that LG Electronics will report an earnings surprise in the third quarter, citing the company’s clever marketing strategies without high expenses and the robust sales of home appliances.

The company’s vehicle component solutions (VS) business, which is designated as the company’s future growth engine, is also expected to gain momentum following the spinoff of LG Chem’s battery business into a new entity called LG Energy Solution.

Thanks to its capability to supply a vast range of electric vehicle components, LG Electronics has been receiving increasing orders of electric vehicle components on a turn-key basis ahead of expected massive vehicle releases by carmakers in Europe and North America from the fourth quarter of this year.

Kim from KB Securities expected LG Electronics to excel in relatively profitable components for all-electric vehicles and the company’s payment balance for electronic parts to reach 60 trillion won this year, up 13 percent from last year.

LG Electronics’ appliance rental business also looks bright. It is already No. 2 player in the country’s home appliance rental market although it was a latecomer. Ko Jung-woo, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities Co. said that LG Electronics’ strong brand awareness and strong marketing have helped it to ascend quickly. He expected the company to see a stretch in the number of rental subscribers this year to 2.7 million.

By Kim Gyu-sik and Lee Eun-joo

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