SEOUL • South Korean appliance giant LG Electronics replaced its chief executive and a raft of other top leaders last Thursday after net profits slumped more than 30 per cent in the third quarter and as its smartphone division struggles.

The company is South Korea's second-largest electronics firm after Samsung.

CEO Jo Seong-jin was appointed in December 2016, and is respected in South Korea for his unlikely journey to the top without a college degree.

But he has struggled to turn around the failing smartphone division, which last month announced its 18th consecutive quarter of losses.

As a whole, LG Electronics' net profits plummeted 30.5 per cent in the July-September period from a year earlier

Mr Jo's term as vice-chairman was extended for three years in March last year, but LG said last Thursday that he was being replaced as CEO by Mr Brian Kwon, 56, with effect from Sunday.

It also changed its chief financial officer and created a new post of chief strategy officer, while changing the presidents of its home entertainment and mobile communications units.

The firm said in a statement: "We have judged we need a fast decision-making process... rather than stick with a management style drawn from past successes."

Mr Kwon has been with the firm for 32 years and has "in-depth experiences and skills" in areas including big data, artificial intelligence and cloud technologies, the company said.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE