Country Summary: North Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea)

Country Name: North Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea)

Capital: Pyongyang

Government Type: single-party state; official state ideology of "Juche" or "national self-reliance"

Background: The first recorded kingdom (Choson) on the Korean Peninsula dates from approximately 2300 B.C.  Over the subsequent centuries, three main kingdoms - Kogoryo, Paekche, and Silla - were established on the Peninsula. By the 5th century A.D., Kogoryo emerged as the most powerful, with control over much of the Peninsula, as well as part of Manchuria (modern-day northeast China). However, Silla allied with the Chinese to create the first unified Korean state in the late 7th century (688). Following the collapse of Silla in the 9th century, Korea was unified under the Koryo (Goryeo; 918-1392) and the Chosen (Joseon; 1392-1910) dynasties. Korea became the object of intense imperialistic rivalry between the Chinese (its traditional benefactor), Japanese, and Russian empires in the latter half of the 19th and early 20th centuries.  Following the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05), Korea was occupied by Imperial Japan. In 1910, Japan formally annexed the entire peninsula.

After World War II, Korea was split along the 38th parallel with the northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored communist control. In 1948, North Korea (formally known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea or DPRK) was founded under President KIM Il Sung.

Continent: Asia

Population: 26,072,217 (2023 est.)

Ethnic Groups: racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese

Languages: Korean

Religions: traditionally Buddhist and Confucian, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)

Economic Overview: one of the last centrally planned economies; hard hit by COVID-19, crop failures, international sanctions, and isolationist policies; declining growth and trade, and heavily reliant on China; poor exchange rate stability

Currency: North Korean Won (KPW)

Real GDP (Purchasing Power Parity): $40 billion (2015 est.) note: data are in 2015 dollars

• North Korea does not publish reliable National Income Accounts data; the data shown are derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) GDP estimates that were made by Angus MADDISON in a study conducted for the OECD; his figure for 1999 was extrapolated to 2015 using estimated real growth rates for North Korea's GDP and an inflation factor based on the US GDP deflator; the results were rounded to the nearest $10 billion.

Real GDP Growth Rate: -1.1% (2015 est.)

Real GDP per Capita: $1,700 (2015 est.) note: data are in 2015 US dollars

Exports: 

• $222 million (2018)

• Comparison Ranking: 201

Export Commodities: refined petroleum, iron alloys, electricity, cars, vaccines and cultures (2021)

Export Partners: China 67%, Suriname 6% (2019)

Imports: 

• $2.32 billion (2018 est.)

• Comparison Ranking: 168

Import Commodities: clothing and apparel, soybean oil, rice, wheat products, clocks/watches (2019)

Import Partners: China 96% (2019)

Natural Resources: coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, precious metals, hydropower

Agricultural Products: rice, maize, vegetables, apples, potatoes, cabbages, fruit, sweet potatoes, beans, soybeans

Industries: military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism

Industrial Production Growth Rate: 

• 4.3% (2014 est.) note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency

• Comparison Ranking: 80

Labor Force: 15.772 million (2022 est.)

Unemployment Rate: 3.07% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment

Natural Hazards: late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall

• Volcanism: P'aektu-san (2,744 m) (also known as Baitoushan, Baegdu, or Changbaishan), on the Chinese border, is considered historically active

Geography:

• Total: 120,538 sq km

• Land: 120,408 sq km

• Water:  130 sq km

(Country Summary, The World Factbook, CIA.gov)

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