Coupang Posts 2nd Straight Quarterly Revenue Dip; Q1 Operating Loss Tops 350 Billion Won

Coupang Inc., the parent of South Korean e-commerce company Coupang, posted an operating loss of about 350 billion won in the first quarter, its largest in about four years and three months since 2021. Revenue rose from a year earlier, but growth slowed to its weakest pace since the company’s New York listing, and profitability swung back into the red.

In a first-quarter consolidated filing submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday (Korea time), Coupang reported revenue of $8.504 billion, up 8% from $7.908 billion a year earlier. Using the average won-dollar exchange rate of 1,465.16 won in the quarter, revenue was 12.4597 trillion won, up 8% from 11.4876 trillion won. However, quarterly revenue fell from the previous quarter for a second straight period, following 12.8103 trillion won in the fourth quarter of last year.

The company’s first-quarter revenue growth rate was 8% on a constant-currency basis, the lowest since Coupang listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021. It was also the first time the quarterly growth rate fell to a single digit; the previous low was 14% in the fourth quarter of last year.

Coupang reported an operating loss of $242 million (354.5 billion won), reversing a year-earlier operating profit of $154 million (233.7 billion won). The operating loss was about 52% of the company’s full-year operating profit last year of 679.0 billion won. Net loss was $266 million (389.7 billion won), compared with net profit of $114 million (165.6 billion won) a year earlier.

The results also missed market expectations. Bloomberg’s consensus forecast called for revenue of $8.511 billion, an operating loss of $39.27 million and a net loss of about $100 million. Some foreign media had projected revenue of about $8.6 billion and an operating loss of roughly $44.94 million.

With the operating loss coming in about five to six times larger than forecasts, Coupang shares weakened in after-hours trading in New York immediately after the earnings release. As of 5:10 a.m., the stock was down about 3% to 4% in after-hours trading from the regular-session close.