Samsung Electronics posted a 60 percent drop in operating profit in the first quarter due to a fall in chip prices and slowing demand for display panels. 

The South Korean tech giant said on Tuesday that its operating profit came to six-point-two trillion won in the January-March period, down 60-point-two percent from a year earlier. 

That also represents a 42-point-three percent drop from the previous quarter and the worst performance since the third quarter of 2016. 

Sales slipped to 52-point-39 trillion won in the first quarter, down 13-point-five percent on-year and eleven-point-six percent on-quarter.

The drop is attributed to the poor performance of Samsung's chip business, which posted four-point-one trillion won in operating profit, a 64-point-three percent fall from a year earlier.