SEOUL– South Korean cosmetics giant LG Household & Health Care Ltd. swung to the red in the fourth quarter last year, the company said Tuesday, as customers reduced spending amid a global economic slowdown.
The cosmetics and household goods maker reported a net loss of 108.8 billion won (US$88.3 million) in the last three months of 2022, compared with a net profit of 136.4 billion won in the same period a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.
LG Household & Health Care said the net loss is blamed on reduced customer spending amid a global economic slowdown in South Korea and other countries. Its Chinese market and duty free channels suffered as well and further drove down sales, the company said.
Its beauty business fell by 57.7 percent on-year to 79.2 billion won due to faltering sales in China.
This is the first time in 18 years the cosmetics maker posted a quarterly net loss, it said.
Operating profit came to 128.9 billion won in the fourth quarter, down 46.5 percent from the same period in 2021. Sales fell 10.6 percent on-year to 1.8 trillion won.
Operating profit for its home care and daily beauty business dipped 6.7 percent on-year to 18.9 billion won, while sales inched up by five percent from the same period a year earlier to 526.5 billion won.
The company’s refreshment business logged an operating profit of 30.8 billion won, down 8.1 percent on-year.
For all of 2022, its net income fell 70 percent on-year to 258.3 billion won.
Source: Yonhap News Agency