HONG KONG (Yonhap) -- Global tech powerhouse Samsung Electronics Co. will likely ship 55 million units of smartphones in the second quarter, gaining further market share globally, a report said Thursday.

UBS Investment Research estimated in the report that Samsung Electronics' smartphone shipments are expected to increase 22.8 pct on-quarter and 182.1 pct on-year in the April-June period.

"Another strong quarter is ahead for Samsung Electronics' mobile devices," read the report. "It is hard to see what could go wrong ahead for Samsung."

According to market researcher IHS iSuppli earlier, Samsung replaced Nokia Corp. as the world's top mobile maker in the first quarter, shipping 92 million handsets.

The Swiss bank's research team expected the launch of the Korean manufacturer's latest smartphone Galaxy S3, which is scheduled for later Thursday, will further drive up sales.

It added that sales growth in emerging markets will significantly contribute to the company's performance this quarter.

Samsung Electronics said last week its first-quarter earnings surged 81.3 percent from a year earlier, fueled by strong sales of its Galaxy series smartphones.

Net profit amounted to 5.04 trillion won ($4.44 billion) in the January-March period, compared with a net income of 2.78 trillion won the previous year, the company said.