Samsung Electronics yesterday reported its worst quarterly profits in 14 years, blaming slowing consumer spending on electronics and a global microchip glut that hit its core memory business.

The South Korean company – one of the world’s largest makers of memory chips and smartphones – said in a statement that operating profit fell to 640 billion won (€434m) – down 95 per cent from a year earlier.

Its first-quarter net income fell 86.1 per cent to 1.57 trillion won, and sales dropped 18 per cent to 63.75 trillion won.

The company said that “overall consumer spending slowed amid the uncertain global macroeconomic environment”.

Samsung also blamed weakening demand for memory chips – which usually generate about half of its profits – and falling chip prices.

The firm’s chip division reported 4.58 trillion won in losses, its first operating loss since 2009 – when the world was emerging from the 2008 financial crisis.