North Korea exports to China hit highest since 2017

North Korea’s exports to China reached $73.26 million in March, the highest monthly total since November 2017, signaling a steady rebound in ties between the two countries. Bilateral trade in the first quarter rose 14.3 percent from a year earlier.

Figures from China’s General Administration of Customs showed total trade between North Korea and China at $662.51 million for the January to March period, up from $582.42 million a year earlier. North Korea’s exports to China totaled $162.44 million, marking the strongest first-quarter performance since 2017.

March exports alone amounted to $73.26 million, the largest monthly figure since November 2017, when shipments reached $100.18 million. Trade had dropped sharply after that year as international sanctions were tightened in response to Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile tests, with China taking part in the measures. From 2018 onward, monthly exports generally hovered between $10 million and $20 million.

Although Chinese authorities have not disclosed a detailed breakdown of imports, labor-intensive products such as wigs are believed to account for a significant share. A source familiar with North Korean trade said exports still consist largely of handmade goods, along with processed products, minerals, seafood, and metal and chemical items that face fewer barriers at customs.

At its ninth party congress in February, North Korea outlined plans to expand foreign trade and promote tourism as a new engine of economic growth. Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said China’s need for economic cooperation with North Korea has also increased. He added that Beijing appears to be seeking greater leverage over Pyongyang through economic ties, with renewed political will helping accelerate the recovery in relations.

Trade is expected to expand further as cross-border transport links resume. Passenger train services and international flights between the two countries, suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic, restarted in March, including the Pyongyang-Beijing route.

Some observers also point to the possible opening of the New Yalu River Bridge linking Dandong in China’s Liaoning Province with Sinuiju in North Korea, as well as the potential resumption of group tours by Chinese visitors.

A South Korean government official said exchanges in trade, transport and people-to-people movement are moving back toward pre-pandemic levels, adding that Chinese group tourism to North Korea could resume within the year.


Oh-Hyuk Kwon hyuk@donga.com