A show targeting foreign nations, North Korea’s “Pyongyang Broadcast,” reported on the 3rd that in the first half of the year, for every sector of the economy, including the production of consumer goods, electricity, fuel, coal, metal, and railroad and transportation, the initial goals of the plan were surpassed.

The Broadcast stated, “Since the beginning of the year, in various areas of the people’s economy, the civilian economic plan for the first half of the year has been surpassed, riding the wave of normalizing production.” It insisted that in the areas of knitting, silk, weaving technology, and industrial production, 117%, 116%, 105%, and 104% of production were respectively recorded.

However, as usual the initial plan was not revealed.

The Broadcast said that “the Pyongyang Children’s Food Factory, the Pyonyang Cosmetic Factory, the Hamheung Honorable (wounded) Veteran’s Resin Factory, and the Kyungryun Patriotic Soda Factory produced more consumer products than planned by diligently engaging in the revolutionary technological activities of the masses and displaying the utmost revolutionary zeal.”

The Broadcast also maintained that the surplus’ were recorded as 105.9% for electricity, 101.7~107.2% of coal per mine, 100.3% for rail transportation, 112.2% for car transportation, 109.1% for import and export cargo ship transportation, 112.1% for domestic cargo ship transportation, and 106.1% for passage rate in trading ports.

However, according to the 2007 “North Korean Economic Growth Rate Results,” as produced by The Korea Bank based in Seoul, North Korea’s actual gross domestic product (GDP) was reduced by 2.3% in 2007 compared to the previous year (itself a 1.1% reduction from 2005). Accordingly, the growth of North Korea’s economy was negative for two consecutive years (2006 and 2007).

According to these results, the size of the North Korean economy last year occupied more or less 1/36th of the South Korean economy (compared to 1/35th the previous year), reflecting an increase in the gap between the two countries. The gross national income (GNI) was the same as last year’s at 1/17th.

North Korea’s GDP rate of growth, from 1999 to 2005, showed seven-years of positive growth, and then entered a decline in 2006. The yearly changes have been 6.2% in 1999, 3.7% in 2001, 1.8% in 2003, 2.2% in 2004, and 3.8% in 2005.