[THE INVESTOR] Korea Inc. is expected to show steady growth in the second quarter but only if Samsung Electronics is included in the club.

Local securities firms have revised up their projections for aggregate operating profit of 172 companies listed on the benchmark KOSPI to 33.83 trillion won (US$29.2 billion) as of June 22, up 1.67 percent from their forecast a month earlier. 

“The burden of KOSPI’s high valuation has been eased as major companies’ Q2 revenue forecasts have continuously increased after better-than-expected Q1 earnings season,” said Kim Jin-young, analyst at NH Investment & Securities.

Analysts also revise the outlook for the companies’ combined sales in the three months ending June 30 upward by 0.02 percent to 407.8 trillion won.

By sector, forecasts on display and related part firms’ operating profit showed the biggest jump, up 11.52 percent from a month ago.

According to the market data provider FnGuide, Samsung Electronics is expected to lead Q2 earnings growth as analysts are upbeat on the sale of Galaxy S7 and 3D NAND flash.

Expectations for Samsung Electronics’ operating profit soared by 6.95 percent, from 6.7 trillion won in May to 7.1 trillion won in June.

“Samsung Electronics has shown persistent rise in quarterly earnings but other firms’ growth has stagnated,” Kim said.

When Samsung is excluded, the outlook for the 171 KOSPI-listed companies have been revised up by 0.34 percent. Expectations on their net profit inched up by 0.23 percent while projection on sales moved down by 0.06 percent.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)