TOKYO (Reuters) – South Korea’s Coupang is halting service in Japan this month, less than two years after it entered the market, the e-commerce firm confirmed on Friday.
Coupang started operations in Japan in June 2021, gaining popularity during the pandemic with its grocery delivery services in the Tokyo area. The company alerted customers that it would halt services in Japan on March 21.
“We have decided to curtail our pilot in Japan which will allow Coupang to focus our resources on growth opportunities in Korea and Taiwan that we expect to generate more value for customers and stakeholders,” the company said in a statement.
Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp is an investor in Coupang.
(Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Jason Neely and Jamie Freed)
