LG targets double-digit growth in home appliance sector: exec

LG Electronics said Tuesday it would seek to consolidate its status as one of the world’s largest home appliance makers by 2014 by taking advantage of “smart” technology.

The firm said in a statement it would target double-digit sales growth from its home appliance business this year and was aiming for sales of $20 billion from the sector in 2014.

“This year will be the beginning of a new era of home appliances.... We have reached the tipping point where appliances are now run entirely by CPUs (central processing units) and computer code,” said Lee Young-ha, president and CEO of LG’s home appliance company.

“Just as automobiles became rolling computers a decade ago, home appliances are experiencing the same transformation ... I’m enthusiastic about LG’s opportunities to drive the transformation of smart appliances over the next few years,” he said in the statement.

By using core technologies, Lee said LG plans to raise energy efficiency by more than 30 percent over existing appliances and to meet and exceed ever-stricter environmental regulations in North American and European markets.

LG said in September that its home appliance unit was expected to achieve up to a 14 percent share of the global market in 2011, from 12 percent last year.

In the third quarter of last year, sales from LG’s home appliance division, which accounts for around 20 percent of total revenue, rose 9 percent to 2.75 trillion won ($2.4 billion).

But operating profit fell to 67.2 billion won from 154.6 billion won a year earlier. (AFP)