Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest computer memory chipmaker, increased its share in the global NAND flash memory market in the second quarter on its technical prowess, industry data showed Sunday.

According to research firm IHS iSuppli, Samsung sold some

US$2.31 billion worth of NAND flash memory used for smartphones and other mobile devices in the April-June period, accounting for 40.6 percent of the $5.66 billion in total around the globe.

The second-quarter stake represents a 3.2 percentage point rise from the previous quarter's 37.4 percent, the data showed.

In August last year, Samsung rolled out the industry's first third-generation V-NAND flash chip, which is said to have double the efficiency of previous versions. 

Early this month, the South Korean tech giant also began mass production of three-bit vertical NAND flash memory chips for the first time in the world to offer chips with improved data storage efficiency.

Japan's Toshiba Corp., which developed the world's first NAND flash memory chip in 1987, sold $1.55 billion worth of NAND flash memory chips in the second quarter, with a market share of 27.3 percent, which is a 4.6 percentage point drop from the previous quarter.

Micron Technology of the United States came in third with a market share of 19.4 percent, or $1.09 billion in sales.

SK hynix Inc., another South Korean chipmaker, clinched 12.6 percent of the global NAND flash memory chip market in the second quarter, up from 10.6 percent in the previous quarter, the data showed.

The data came as Samsung, facing a slowdown in smartphone sales and worsening profitability, is seeking to further beef up its presence in the computer memory chip market.

Early this month, Samsung said it plans to invest some 15.6 trillion won (US$14.5 billion) to set up a new chipmaking facility in South Korea to better meet the soaring global demands for chips. 

The company added the new facility will have a "significant" impact on its chipmaking competitiveness.(Yonhap)