Samsung mobile recovery suffers blow as Galaxy Notes 'catch fire'

By Se Young Lee SEOUL (Reuters) - The recovery in Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's mobile business suffered a blow on Thursday as reports of exploding batteries forced the firm to delay shipments of Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, and knocked $7 billion off its market value. Investors drove the stock to two-week lows after the global smartphone leader told Reuters late on Wednesday the shipments had been delayed for quality control testing, and that shipments to South Korea's top three mobile carriers had been halted. Faults with the new premium flagship device could deal a major blow to the South Korean giant, which was counting on the Galaxy Note 7 to maintain its strong mobile earnings momentum against Apple Inc's new iPhones expected to be unveiled next week.