South Korea's LG Electronics swung to a profit in the fourth quarter, helped by its latest smartphone models and improved sales in its TV business.     

LG reported on Wednesday an October-December operating profit of 23 billion won ($20.5 million) versus a consensus forecast for a 64 billion won profit by Thomson Reuters.     

That compared with a loss of 246 billion won a year ago and 32 billion won loss in the preceding quarter.     

LG's handset business reported a 9.9 billion won operating profit after six straight quarters of losses, marking a sharp improvement from a 262 billion won loss a year ago and a 140 billion won loss in the third quarter. – Reuters