Home appliances, vehicle components and HVAC drive record sales and operating profit, comfortably beating market expectations LG Electronics' headquarters in Yeouido, western Seoul (LG Electronics) LG Electronics said Tuesday it delivered its best-ever second-quarter performance, helped by strong sales of home appliances, vehicle components, and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems.In a regulatory filing, the company estimated its operating profit for the April-June period at 1.58 trillion won ($1.04 billion), up 146.9 percent from a year earlier. Revenue rose 14.9 percent on-year to 23.83 trillion won.The preliminary results beat market expectations. According to financial data provider FnGuide, local brokerages had expected LG Electronics to post 1.06 trillion won in operating profit and 22.54 trillion won in revenue for the quarter.For the first half, LG reported 47.56 trillion won in sales and 3.25 trillion won in operating profit, both record highs. Its first-half operating profit alone exceeded the 2.48 trillion won the company posted for all of last year.The results came despite a difficult operating environment marked by conflict in the Middle East and lingering uncertainty in the global economy.LG said the results reflected stronger sales across its main businesses and an improving profit structure, helped by cost efficiency, subscription services, webOS and online sales channels.A partial refund of tariffs the company paid in the US last year also gave a lift to earnings. Even without the one-off gain, however, LG said its second-quarter operating profit rose sharply from a year earlier.The company also booked costs from a voluntary retirement program carried out in April as part of efforts to streamline its workforce. The impact was limited by cost-control measures across business divisions and a companywide emergency management system introduced to better respond to external risks.By division, the home appliance solution unit extended its growth by targeting both premium products and the mass market. LG has also been expanding its business-to-business appliance portfolio, with offerings such as commercial laundry systems and built-in appliances.The media entertainment solution division improved from a year earlier, supported by new premium TV models including OLED evo and Micro RGB TVs. The division also kept a closer watch on costs, inventory and marketing spending to improve its business fundamentals.The vehicle solution unit continues to benefit from a solid order backlog and partnerships with major global automakers. Rising demand for premium in-vehicle infotainment systems has also helped the business establish itself as a new cash-generating area in the B2B segment.LG said the unit is expected to maintain profit-focused growth in the second half, supported by continued efforts to improve its cost structure.The eco solution division, which covers heating and cooling systems, saw stronger sales in overseas markets, including Europe, where record heat waves boosted demand for air conditioners. The division is also seeing new demand for heat pumps and unitary HVAC systems.In the second half, LG is expected to place greater emphasis on future growth areas. Its component business is expanding beyond core appliance parts such as compressors and motors into robot actuators, while the company is also investing in cooling solutions for artificial intelligence data centers.LG Electronics is scheduled to release its net profit and detailed business division results for the second quarter during its earnings conference call later this month.