LG Electronics Inc. said Tuesday its operating profit for the July-September period climbed 33.5 percent on-year thanks to robust sales of home appliances.

Its third-quarter operating profit came to 996.7 billion won (US$738 million), compared with the 746.6 billion won from a year ago, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Sales decreased 2.2 percent to 21.17 trillion won. The data for net income was not available.

The operating profit was 20.2 percent higher than the average estimate, according to a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.

The company will release its final earnings report later.

LG Electronics attributes its stronger operating profit to the expansion of its B2B operations in areas such as electric automotive parts and heating and air conditioning solutions.

The company said it has also benefited from introducing business models that combine products and content services while leveraging its premium product lineups, such as OLED televisions, to strengthen its overall sales.

LG Electronics said its television business continued to perform efficiently despite a decrease in demand. According to the company, its content-service business has also seen significant growth, expanding from the previous product-centric approach to encompassing a media and entertainment-oriented platform.

Source: Yonhap News Agency