Samsung Elec cautious on outlook, says mobile business environment tough

A man stands next to a banner promoting Samsung Electronics' smartphone Galaxy 6 at a store in Seoul, South Korea, July 7, 2015.

/Kim Hong-Ji

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) said on Thursday its April-June operating profit fell 4 percent from a year earlier, in line with its earnings guidance, hurt by a supply shortage for one of its main smartphone models. Samsung, the world's top smartphone maker, reported a 6.9 trillion won ($5.9 billion) profit for the second quarter, matching a preliminary estimate given early this month. It was its best quarterly operating profit in a year. Profit for the mobile division fell to 2.76 trillion won from 4.42 trillion won a year earlier. Analysts say the South Korean firm struggled to meet demand for the S6 edge phone because the curved screen for the device is harder to make. (Reporting by Se Young Lee; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)