Samsung has suspended production of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones following reports of fires in replacement devices, South Korean media said.
The move is a further setback for the tech giant in the midst of its worst ever phone recall crisis.
Samsung's decision to temporarily halt Note 7 production was done in cooperation with authorities in China and the US, as two US carriers have stopped exchanging or selling new Note 7 phones, Yonhap News Agency cited a source at a Samsung partner firm as saying.
Problems with replacements for the Note 7 model would create a new and potentially costly chapter to a global scandal which has hurt the reputation of the world's biggest smartphone maker.
It also could add new dangers for consumers.
Samsung said it was "adjusting" production of the Note 7 smartphone.
"We are in the process of adjusting production volumes to enhance quality control and to enable thorough investigations following the recent cases of Galaxy Note 7 explosions," the company said in a statement.
AT&T Inc, the number two US wireless carrier, said it will stop issuing new Note 7s to replace recalled phones due to reports of fires from replacement devices that Samsung has said used safe batteries.
It will let customers with a recalled Note 7 exchange that device for another Samsung smartphone or other smartphone of their choice.
T-Mobile US said it was temporarily halting sales of new Note 7s as well as exchanges while Samsung investigated "multiple reports of issues" with its flagship device.
Australia's largest carrier, Telstra, said Samsung had paused supply of new Note 7s.
"Samsung says it is confident in the replacement Note 7 and advises it has no reason to believe it's unsafe," Telstra said in a statement on its website.
Major airlines and airport authorities are urging passengers to stop using the phone on board.
On 2 September, Samsung announced a global recall of 2.5 million Note 7s in ten markets including the US due to faulty batteries causing some of the phones to catch fire.
A Southwest Airline flight was evacuated last week after a replacement model Note 7 began smoking inside the plane, according to the family who owns the phone.
Samsung said it was investigating reports of "heat damage issues" and would share its findings when the investigation was complete.
"If we determine a product safety issue exists, Samsung will take immediate steps approved by the CPSC (US Consumer Product Safety Commission) to resolve the situation," Samsung told Reuters in a statement.
