The incomes of North Korean market sellers continue to decline even though trade with China and Russia has partially resumed with the easing of the COVID-19 border lockdown. A significant number of market businesspeople are facing financial difficulties due to the decline in income, and some people are even calling the current situation akin to a “Second Arduous March.”
Market seller income generally refers to net income after deducting original product costs, the cost of materials, and market fees. According to a Daily NK source in South Pyongan Province, the average annual income of grain sellers at Okjon General Market in Pyongsong was USD 560 in 2020 but dropped to USD 300 in 2023. The source said that grain traders usually have higher incomes because their earnings are relatively stable due to the nature of the North Korean market system. Therefore, the situation for middle- and low-income traders is much worse, and the decline in incomes affects small traders with less income the most.
The main cause of the income decline is the contraction of North Korean markets after the country shut its borders more than three years ago. North Korea’s government severely cracked down on the economic activities of the market vendors, and even after the end of the pandemic, they maintained strict control over the markets, reducing the supply of goods and suppressing market activities.
The Workers’ Party of Korea’s economic management strategy has changed significantly in recent years: the influence of the market economy is shrinking and rapidly changing into a controlled economy. To summarize North Korea’s economic activities to date, creative economic activities led by private companies have been greatly reduced, and the activities of certain businesses, such as those involved in agricultural production, are supported by the state budget or through preferential treatment from the Workers’ Party.
After the formalization of the country’s network of “general markets” in the 2000s, the country’s poor economy was revived to a certain extent thanks to the markets, which provided a basis for the economy and local market traders and enterprises to engage in trade. No one can deny that the active participation of individuals in the market and trading activities based on the model of the free market economy has led to economic growth. Up to now, the market has adequately supported individuals and local small and medium-sized companies by allowing interactions between individuals and businesses, the inflow of foreign products, and capital accumulation. Market sellers have been able to earn a certain amount of income in the process.
However, North Korea’s market system has been shrinking rapidly in recent years due to the economic management policies of the country’s leadership, which are focused on weakening the market economy and strengthening the controlled economy. There is no question that economic development throughout the world is the result of the creative and active economic activities of individuals and private companies. Therefore, if the Workers’ Party wants to serve its people, it should focus its economic policy on improving the country’s market economy. Only then will North Koreans be able to survive the current economic crisis.
Translated by Annie Eunjung Kim. Edited by Robert Lauler.
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