Trading With the Enemy
The North Korean Nuclear Deal
The Many Sides of Songdo
North Korea was a bit premature when it announced this summer that the U.S. would lift trade barriers between the two nations. But with representatives from both sides meeting frequently and Pyongyang's having agreed to dismantle its nuclear program, the State Department is hinting that it may relax trade restrictions with the country. North Korea is already bolstering its exports. Last year, it sold $1.75 billion worth of products abroad, to such buyers as China and the European Union. What might a catalog of products made in North Korea include? Here's a preview.
S.U.V.: $13,000
In 2002, the state-run Ryonbong General Corp. teamed up with Pyeonghwa Motors, which is based in Seoul, South Korea, to build a $55 million factory in the North Korean town of Nampo. Currently, the factory makes about 600 vehicles a year for Koreans on both sides of the demilitarized zone, but it has the capacity to churn out 20,000. North Korean leader Kim Jong Il named the S.U.V. Ppoggugi, the Korean word for cuckoo.
Beer: $2.70 for a half-liter
When it comes to brewing, the North Koreans didn't steal anyone's recipe; they bought someone else's factory. In 2000, the country spent about $2 million on Ushers, a 176-year-old English brewing complex that it transported in full to Pyongyang. Renamed Taedonggang, for Pyongyang's Taedong River, it produces an estimated 47,000 gallons of beer a year and has an 80 percent market share in North Korea.
Computer game: $35
The Korea Computer Center, a state-run consortium of research facilities, produces everything from translation software to medical devices. One potential export is a computer game called Silver Star 2006, a version of the Asian board game Go. The Silver Star series' Go-playing software has bested other machines to win the world computer-Go championship for three years running.
The writings of Kim Jong Il: Free to $4.80
Thick pamphlets written by the Dear Leader (and his father, Kim Il Sung) can be purchased and downloaded now at Naenara, North Korea's official website. Not only are Kim's thoughts on opera, architecture, and film available, but so are tracts like On Further Developing Mass Gymnastics. Films, ringtones, nationalistic songs, and the country's entire code of laws are also a click away.
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