Sales in the July to September period were 35.9 trillion won (US$30 billion), up 18 percent on the same period last year, while consolidated operating profit almost tripled to 4.2 trillion won. Samsung didn't announce company-wide net profit figures.

Sales and profitability rose across the board in all of Samsung's four main business sectors.

In the semiconductor division prices for DRAM chips, which are used as main memory in PCs, increased during the quarter on the back of seasonal demand and NAND flash memory prices also increased.

Samsung shipped 26 percent more LCD panels in the quarter than the same period last year. Demand was strong from laptop and monitor makers and Samsung saw strong demand for TV panels thanks to companies gearing up for year-end sales and higher sales in China.

In the telecom Samsung shipped 60.2 million cell phone handsets during the quarter however the average selling price of each handset dropped 3 percent to US$120. The company blamed this drop on lower shipments in South Korea, where the selling price is generally higher than other markets.