Samsung Electronics Co said on Thursday third-quarter operating profit likely rose by 58 percent as strong smartphone, TV and home appliance sales and increased chip shipments offset the effects of weak memory chip prices.

The South Korean tech giant said operating profit was likely 12.3 trillion won ($10.6 billion) in the quarter ended September, far above the 10.5 trillion won analyst forecast by Refinitiv SmartEstimate.

Revenue likely rose by 6 percent to 66 trillion won from a year earlier, the company said.

Samsung's smartphone shipments during the quarter jumped to around 80 million units from 54.2 million in the second quarter after handset demand rebounded from a contraction due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of 2020, analysts said.

While the company's overall chip business was muted due to weaker memory chip prices during the quarter, analysts said orders for graphic chips for gaming consoles, and orders for mobile chips, including from Chinese smartphone maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, boosted shipments.

Samsung Electronics is crucial to South Korea's economic health. It is the flagship subsidiary of the giant Samsung group, by far the largest of the family-controlled conglomerates known as Chaebols that dominate business in the world's 12th-largest economy.

Its overall turnover is equivalent to a fifth of the country's gross domestic product.

Samsung withholds net profit and sector-by-sector business performance data until it releases its final earnings report, expected later this month.

(With input from agencies)