China imports from North Korea surge in first quarter
BEIJING: China’s imports from North Korea surged nearly 20 per cent in the first quarter despite international sanctions and a suspension of coal purchases, reflecting the continued close economic ties between the two countries.
Beijing, the North’s sole ally and its main provider of trade and aid, has been under pressure from the United States to convince its isolated neighbour to abandon its nuclear programme.
President Donald Trump this week heralded China’s decision to prohibit North Korean coal shipments – a crucial foreign currency-earner for Pyongyang.
But China still imported 3.44 billion yuan (around US$500 million) worth of goods from North Korea in the first three months of the year, China’s customs administration said Thursday, an increase of 18.4 per cent year on year.
China insists it has not imported North Korean coal after February 18, when Beijing formally broke off its imports as it hardened its position after a fresh missile test from Pyongyang.
The customs data did not give precise details for March, but taken with previously-released figures for January and February, it suggests that other imports from the North could have increased to partially mute the effect of the coal ban.
“It is beyond dispute that (China and North Korea) will maintain a normal trade relationship while at the same time we observe UN Security Council resolutions,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Thursday during a regular press briefing, calling the
It is beyond dispute that (China and North Korea) will maintain a normal trade relationship while at the same time we observe UN Security Council resolutions.
two countries “neighbours who enjoy a traditional friendship”.
According to previously published customs data, China’s total imports from North Korea amounted to US$206.9 million in January and US$176.7 million in February, of which US$97.5 million was for coal before the suspension took effect in the middle of the month.
The total halt of Chinese coal purchases is supposed to rid the North’s Kim dynasty of one of its crucial sources of foreign currency. In 2016, China imported US$1.19 billion worth of the fossil fuel.
Yet the suspension didn’t prevent a senior North Korean official, the economist Ri SunChol, from assuring AFP at the end of February that it would have “no substantial impact on the economy” of the country. — AFP
Lu Kang, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman