(2nd LD) Naver Q2 net income up 41.6 pct as AI boosts core biz

Naver Corp., South Korea's leading online portal operator, reported a significant surge in its second-quarter net profit, rising by 41.6 percent compared to the same period last year. The company credited this growth to the increasing influence of artificial intelligence (AI) on its main businesses. For the April-June quarter, Naver's net profit reached 704.3 billion won (US$494.8 million), while operating profit amounted to 520.3 billion won, which was a slight decline of 0.2 percent. Revenue, however, saw a notable increase of 16.2 percent to 3.38 trillion won.

The company's core businesses, including commerce and advertisements, played a crucial role in Naver's robust earnings. Naver attributed this success to the sales boost driven by AI. The firm's global consumer-to-consumer platforms, such as Poshmark, also contributed positively to the earnings. Additionally, operating profit experienced a slight decline due to investments in AI infrastructure.

By business segment, Naver's flagship search platform unit experienced a 12.3 percent year-on-year sales growth, reaching 1.9 trillion won. The financial platform saw a 16 percent increase, reaching 470.7 billion won, driven by its rapidly expanding Naver Smart Store. Global commerce platforms, including Poshmark and Wallapop, saw sales grow by 24.4 percent to 1.16 trillion won.

The company's contents division, however, saw a minor 0.5 percent sales increase. On the enterprise side, Naver's business saw a significant 21.3 percent year-on-year growth.

Naver expressed optimism about future revenues, anticipating new income from its AI factory, which is set to commence operations early next year in collaboration with U.S. chip giant Nvidia. The CEO of Naver, Choi Soo-yeon, stated that the company aims to establish a new growth momentum in the AI computing market by securing customers through Nvidia's ecosystem and Naver's existing corporate and public clients.

Additionally, Naver repurchased around 4.9 million shares, valued at approximately 1 trillion won, early in the week to bolster shareholder value.