Coupang Reports Q1 Operating Profit of 53.1 Billion KRW, Down 61% YoY (Comprehensive)

Net Income Turns Negative for Only 7 Quarters
Sales Surpass 9 Trillion Won for the First Time Ever
Active Customers Increase 16% to 21.5 Million

Coupang surpassed 9 trillion won in sales for the first time in the first quarter of this year, but operating profit was halved, turning net income into a loss. Although the operating profit remained positive, it appears to have taken a difficult first step toward achieving two consecutive years of profitability.

Coupang, a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, announced on the 8th that its operating profit for the first quarter of this year was $40 million (approximately 53.1 billion won, based on an exchange rate of 1,328.45 won), a 61% decrease compared to the same period last year. This is the first time since the third quarter of 2022, when it first turned an operating profit, that Coupang's operating profit has declined year-over-year.

Net loss was $24 million (approximately 31.9 billion won), marking a return to losses after seven quarters since the second quarter of 2022. Previously, Coupang had posted net profits for six consecutive quarters from the third quarter of 2022 through the fourth quarter of last year. In the first quarter of last year, it recorded a net profit of $90.85 million (approximately 116 billion won).

Sales increased by 28% to $7.114 billion (9.4505 trillion won). Even excluding the first-quarter sales of Farfetch, which was acquired in January and reflected for the first time this quarter ($288 million, 382.4 billion won), sales grew 23% year-over-year to 9.068 trillion won. This is the first time Coupang has exceeded 9 trillion won in quarterly sales.

By business segment, product commerce sales (Rocket Delivery, Rocket Fresh, Marketplace, Rocket Growth) reached $6.494 billion (8.6269 trillion won), a 20% increase compared to the same period last year.

The number of active customers in product commerce was 21.5 million, a 16% increase from 18.6 million the previous year. Sales per active customer were $315 (418,460 won). Active customers refer to the number of customers who have purchased a product at least once on Coupang.

Growth business sales, including Coupang Eats, Taiwan operations, and Farfetch, recorded $620 million (823.6 billion won), more than four times the $142 million (181.3 billion won) in the same period last year. The company attributed this to the inclusion of Farfetch.

However, losses increased. The EBITDA loss of growth businesses was $186 million (247 billion won), four times larger than the same period last year. This includes Farfetch's EBITDA loss of $31 million (41.1 billion won).

Gaurav Anand, Coupang's Chief Financial Officer (CFO), said, "These results reflect Coupang's efforts to enhance customer experience and operational excellence," adding, "Coupang's market share in the $560 billion commerce market is still in the single digits, and we will continue to focus on 'customer wow' going forward."