China’s Exports to North Korea Up for 3rd Straight Month

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China’s exports to North Korea grew for the third straight month in August, taking up a quarter of the overall volume of this year to date, China’s General Administration of Customs reported on Sept. 18.

Chinese shipments to North Korea saw a 30 percent increase from $16.8 million in July to $22.5 million in August, although exports were almost 10 times higher two years earlier, before the pandemic hit. The exports to North Korea in 2019 totaled $2.74 billion.

China accounts for more than 90 percent of North Korea’s foreign trade despite U.N. sanctions against the country. Data show 96.3 percent of North Korea’s imports in 2020 were from China.

Since 2006, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been prioritizing its nuclear arsenal to boost national defense. The United Nations has banned Pyongyang from importing weapons, oil, and gas products, and from selling metals, seafood, coal, and textiles.

It remains unclear whether the products China is trading with North Korea are in line with U.N. sanctions.

Meanwhile, China imported $6.2 million of goods from North Korea in August, up from $4.1 million in July, China’s customs data showed.

The records tracked official trade only, excluding cross-border smuggling between the two neighboring countries.

Early last year, North Korea was also one of the first countries to shut its borders and halted trade with China following the start of the pandemic.