Samsung Elec says preorders for Galaxy S7 phones stronger than expected

Tech giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd has seen stronger-than-expected preorders for its new flagship Galaxy S7 smartphones launching this week, a senior company executive said on Thursday.

Koh Dong-jin, president of Samsung's handsets business, did not give a figure or disclose sales targets during a press briefing for the phones, which go on sale in South Korea and other markets on Friday.

But he said Samsung expects the S7s to help revive sales in China, the world's top smartphone market where researchers say the Korean firm is lagging its competitors.

The Galaxy S7s offer incremental upgrades, leading some analysts to predict sales in the first year will be weaker than last year's Galaxy S6s.