North Korean Trade with China as Reported in Chinese Customs Statistics: 1995-2009 Energy and Minerals Trends and Implications

by Nathaniel Aden

The Korean Journal of Defense Analysis
Vol. 23, No. 2, June 2011, 231–255

[Abstract]:

China is North Korea’s largest international trading partner. Since 2000, fuels and minerals have become a larger portion of North Korean exports and a smaller portion of imports. North Korea remains a net importer of Chinese crude oil and oil products; however, it became a net exporter of electricity and coal to China in 2003. Aside from coal, imports and exports of metallic minerals and mining equipment are growing segments of China-North Korea trade. Whereas North Korean electricity and iron ore exports are sold at sub-market “friendship prices” Chinese coal and oil products have been sold to North Korea at premium prices. Chinese Customs data suggest that Beijing is taking a pragmatic, market-oriented approach to trade with its reclusive neighbor, while the increasingly asymmetrical energy embodiment of bilateral trade may reflect deterioration of North Korea’s non-military industries.

>>Read the full Article here (06_Nathaniel Aden.pdf).

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See also North Korea’s Reliance on China and China’s Influence on North Korea