Samsung Electronics shares got a boost on Thursday after the technology giant's mobile chief said pre-orders for the flagship Galaxy S8 smartphone had exceeded those for the previous S7 device. Shares were trading around 1.24 percent higher at 2.1 million Korean won near the end of the trading day in South Korea. The Galaxy S8 goes on sales on April 21 in South Korea, the U.S. and Canada but pre-orders are already open and give an indication of the kind of demand the device will see. "It's still a bit early, but initial response to the pre-orders that have begun at various places across the world have been better than expected," Koh Dong-jin, the head of Samsung's mobile division, said at a media briefing, according to Reuters.

It's positive news for the electronics titan after fears that the Note 7 scandal, in which devices caught fire and were eventually recalled and discontinued, could dent confidence in the brand. Samsung appears to have weathered that storm. Counterpoint Research expects Samsung to ship close to 50 million of the devices in 2017. That would be more than the 48 million S7 and S7 Edge models shipped by Samsung, according to IHS Markit. Koh's comments come after Samsung confirmed to CNBC on Monday that pre-orders for the Galaxy S8 were more popular than the S7 in the U.S.

A view of the new Samsung Galaxy S8 at its Samsung launch event, March 29, 2017 in New York City. Drew Angerer | Getty Images