LG Electronics on Monday set a global sales target of 40 million smartphones for 2013, as the South Korean firm seeks to expand its presence in a market dominated by bigger rivals such as Samsung.

The world's fifth-largest handset maker said in a statement that it aims to shift 10 million units each quarter by more than doubling sales of phones designed for next-generation 4G services called Long-Term Evolution (LTE).

Once the world's number three phone maker in the pre-smartphone era, LG has struggled in recent years, with its Optimus smartphone series lagging Apple's iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy S.

But heavy promotion of new models including the Optimus G saw LG's smartphone sales surge 56 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012 from a year ago to a record 8.6 million units.

Last week, the firm unveiled its latest Optimus G, featuring a full high-definition screen, which packs 2.0 million pixels -- twice as many as smartphones with ordinary HD screens.

LG's main domestic rival and the world's top smartphone maker, Samsung, has sold more than 40 million units of its latest flagship handset, Galaxy S III, since its launch in May.