NAVER stock rose by 1,100 won on July 21, up 5.3%. South Korea’s e-commerce competitive landscape is shifting as Coupang suffers repeated major setbacks. Coupang had a large-scale personal data leak last year and was recently hit with a hefty fine of 600 billion won. On July 18, a fire broke out again at its logistics center in Incheon, raising concerns about losses to goods and facilities.
NAVER’s Delivery Service Expansion
NAVER has recently been focusing on boosting delivery competitiveness as a core task within its institutional business. Specific expansion measures are as follows:
Dawn Delivery service: launched in partnership with Kurly
Same-day delivery service: has officially launched
N Delivery (guaranteed delivery date): partnering with logistics companies to continue expanding service coverage
Expansion of delivery time windows: extending from same-day and next-day delivery to dawn delivery and Sunday delivery
N Delivery by NAVER (test version): launched starting July 16, supporting end-to-end warehouse management, shipping, exchanges/returns, and customer responses for Smart Store sellers
NAVER CEO Choi Soo-yeon said during the April 2026 first-quarter earnings conference call: “We are considering direct investment in logistics,” adding that it is reviewing “the optimal structure that can lower per-delivery costs and ensure the security of logistics data.” It has also been reported that NAVER may build its own logistics hub within the Seoul metropolitan area, but NAVER said it is currently only in the assessment stage and has not made a final decision.
Coupang Faces a String of Setbacks
After Coupang’s personal data leak incident in November 2025, its growth rate slowed down. It has recently been hit with an additional high fine of 600 billion won. On July 18, 2026, a fire broke out at its logistics center in Incheon, further intensifying market concerns about losses to goods and facilities. An e-commerce industry insider said: “Because Coupang is based on a direct-buy model, its business model is somewhat different from 11Street and Gmarket. However, NAVER directly competes for sellers, advertisers, and consumers against them. From the standpoint of an open market, NAVER’s growth poses a greater threat than Coupang’s.”
NAVER Q2 2026 Financial Forecast
According to FnGuide’s forecasts, NAVER’s Q2 2026 revenue will be 3.3663 trillion won (up 15.5% year over year), driven mainly by strong growth in the advertising and e-commerce businesses. Operating profit is expected to be 566 billion won (up 8.5% year over year). However, due to increased e-commerce investment costs, such as AI infrastructure and improved membership benefits, the upside for profitability is expected to be limited.
In the first half of the year, NAVER also launched “Nepda Sale” (an upgraded version of “Naver Shopping Festa”). Cumulative sales for a similar two-week promotion held in the second half of last year surpassed 1 trillion won.
FAQ
What was NAVER’s rise on July 21?
According to reports, NAVER’s stock rose by 1,100 won on July 21, 2026, up 5.3%.
How wide is the gap between NAVER and Coupang according to Wiseapp Retail’s monthly payment amount report?
Based on Wiseapp Retail’s analysis of the 2026 first-half average monthly payment amounts, using Coupang as an index of 100, NAVER/Naver Pay scored 96.5, becoming the retail platform closest to Coupang; Gmarket/Auction scored 21.8.
What are FnGuide’s financial forecasts for NAVER in Q2 2026?
FnGuide forecasts NAVER’s Q2 2026 revenue at 3.3663 trillion won (up 15.5% year over year) and operating profit at 566 billion won (up 8.5% year over year). However, due to increased costs for AI infrastructure and e-commerce investments, there is limited room for improvement in profitability.
