According to the Korea Exchange on September 15, the share price of CJ Korea Express, Korea's No. 1 package delivery company, has fallen 11.2 percent for the past two days. During the same period, the Hanjin Transportation stock also dropped 5.3 percent.

 

The biggest factor was the prospect that the state-run NACF would invest 100 billion won to acquire a smaller package delivery company and offer lower rates for delivery services. Last month, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Lee Dong-phil said in an executive meeting, "The ministry must review a plan to support the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation to establish a package delivery service unit as a way to cut out the middleman in the farm goods market."

 

The main reason for the agricultural cooperative federation to consider entering into the package delivery services market itself has to do with the fact that Korea Post recently stopped the delivery service on Saturdays, which affected farmers who relied on the postal service for their produce delivery. But most analysts said even if the NACF indeed moves into the market, its impact would be minimal because the share of farm goods in total delivery volume is less than 1 percent.