North Korea’s markets — known as jangmadang (장마당) — emerged from the famine of the 1990s and have since become the backbone of the country’s informal economy. Daily NK tracks grain and rice prices, foreign currency exchange rates, government crackdowns on market activity, the rise of the donju merchant class, and the broader marketization of North Korean society. Our network of in-country sources provides some of the most detailed and timely reporting on North Korea’s markets available in English.
Tag: markets
North Korea Market Prices Update: Feb. 18, 2020
All prices shown in KPW and current as of February 18, 2020.
Data: Daily NK
N. Korean rice sellers raking it in thanks to skyrocketing prices
The rise of North Korean rice prices have led to massive profits for rice wholesalers who acquired rice from China before the closure of...
N. Korea shuts down transit in and out of Sinuiju
North Korean authorities in Sinuiju have shut down transit in and out of the city presumably as part of efforts to prevent the spread...
N. Korean state orchestrates lower prices for soybean oil, sugar
State interventions in the market has led to price drops for some commodities in North Korea's local markets, while other commodity prices remain higher...
North Korea Market Prices Update: February 11, 2020
All prices shown in KPW and current as of February 11, 2020.
Data: Daily NK
N. Korea uses military law to punish smuggling on border
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un recently ordered that smuggling in the border areas as well as the abetting or concealing of such activities...
N. Korea begins enforcing price controls in local markets
North Korean authorities have begun enforcing price controls after commodity prices spiked following the closure of the Sino-North Korean border, Daily NK has learned.
"Officials...
North Korea Market Prices: February 6, 2020
All prices are in KPW and current as of February 6, 2020.
Data: Daily NK
Commodity prices spike in N. Korea following border shutdown
Commodity prices have skyrocketed at local markets throughout North Korea following the North Korea's closure of the country's border with China as part of...
N. Koreans hurting economically due to border shutdown
North Koreans are complaining that their government's shutdown of trade over the Sino-North Korean border due to fears over the Wuhan coronovirus is causing...
