Indo-Pacific — 2026-07-30

North Korea Exports Hit Eight-Year High in 2025 as China Accounts for 98 Percent of Trade

BLUFPyongyang's export rebound reinforces rather than reduces its near-total dependency on Beijing, giving China unmatched leverage over North Korean economic survival.

North Korea's exports rose 30 percent year on year in 2025 to $468.59 million, the highest total since 2017's $1.77 billion, according to data released Tuesday by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency and reported by Korea Times and UPI 12. Imports grew 13.9 percent to $2.66 billion, leaving Pyongyang with a $2.19 billion trade deficit as total foreign trade rose 16 percent to $3.13 billion, nearing pre-pandemic 2019 levels after a 2024 lull 123. China accounted for 98.2 percent of North Korea's total trade, with the bilateral deficit with Beijing rising 11.9 percent to the same $2.19 billion figure, while Vietnam and Tanzania followed as Pyongyang's next-largest trade partners 1234. KOTRA's data listed prepared feathers and down, minerals, steel, mineral fuels, and watches and watch parts among North Korea's leading export items 12. NK News reported that Pyongyang's trade remained concentrated in Asia while it maintained commercial ties with European and African states 3.

Analysis
North Korea's external solvency now rests overwhelmingly on Beijing's tolerance: China absorbs 98 percent of total trade, and the bilateral deficit widened in step with the export rebound rather than narrowing it. The recovery is concentrated in a narrow raw and semi-processed goods basket rather than manufactured exports or new markets, and the roughly $2.2 billion import-export gap is financed largely through that same China relationship, limiting the bearing of multilateral sanctions enforcement outside it. European and African commercial ties remain marginal against the China-dominated total, leaving Pyongyang's external position hostage to decisions made in Beijing rather than diversification of its own trade base. The 30 percent rise may read less as durable recovery than as a rebound off a depressed post-pandemic base, given 2025 exports remain roughly a quarter of the pre-sanctions 2017 total. That caveat matters because sourcing rests on a single KOTRA release, with other outlets offering only secondary pickups of the same data.

5 sources

N. Korea exports hit 8-year high in 2025: data - Korea Times
N. Korea's exports hit 8-year high in 2025: data - UPI
North Korea's trade rebounds as reliance on China reaches near-record high - NK News
North's exports jump 30% on year to post 8-year high in 2025 - Korea JoongAng Daily
2025년 북한 대외무역 동향 (2025 North Korea External Trade Trends) - KOTRA (Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency)