A generalization and the widespread use of foreign currency in North Korea is called dollarization. Opinions are mixed over the backgrounds and the causes of the phenomenon, whether it is peculiar to the North, what it implies about the reality, and what effects it will have on the North's...

The basis for studying the North Korean economy is to gain an understanding of the size of the overall economy and the trends within it. However, owing to the fact that North Korea does not release data on its GDP and GNI, the task has fallen on the shoulders of outside researchers and such...

In the study of the North Korean economy, industrial and business activities still remain uncharted territory. They are the most basic components of an economy, yet the scarcity of information makes those in North Korea almost impossible to understand from the outside world. Today, the general...

One of the most important variables in the study of the North Korean economy is market prices and foreign exchange rates. This is because of the assumption that the two variables immediately reflect the status and trends of the North Korean economy. In fact, many North Korean economic studies...

In the study of the North Korean economy, industrial and business activities still remain uncharted territory. They are the most basic components of an economy, yet the scarcity of information makes those in North Korea almost impossible to understand from the outside world. Today, the general...

Since the first provision of international food assistance in the mid-1990s, humanitarian aid to North Korea has been a constant source of scrutiny and debate. It was not only a major contributing factor to ending the devastating famine in the mid-to-late 1990s, but it has continuously helped...

Over the past three decades, North Korea has experienced a period of economic change, most notably in the development of the market. North Korea maintains that it operates a tightly controlled planned economy, the elements of which are poorly understood by the international community. Currently,...

The international community assumes that most of the profits from North Korea's mineral exports are diverted to the development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) such as nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. This belief has led to the implementation of strong export sanctions since the...

Korean Abstract: 광물은 북한의 핵심 수출품이다. 국제사회는 북한의 광물 수출대금 중 상당 부분이 핵ㆍ미사일 등 대량살상무기(WMD) 개발에 전용된다고 간주하고 2016년부터 강력한 수출제재를 실시하고 있다. 이에 따라 북한은...