Inter-Koreantradetotaled$724millionlastyear,up12.9percentfromayearearlier,accordingtomonthlydatareleasedbytheministryofunificat
Inter-Korean trade totaled $724 million last year, up 12.9 percent from a year earlier, according to monthly data released by the ministry of unification.
South Korea imported $289 million worth of goods, an increase of 6.5 percent from a year earlier, while goods valued at $434 million were shipped to North Korea, a gain of 17.5 percent.
Major items brought in were agricultural-forestry-fishery products and textiles. Major northbound shipments were agricultural-forestry-fishery products, textiles, chemical industrial goods and other miscellaneous items.
Of the bilateral trade of $724 million last year, commercial transactions amounted to $486 million, up 19.2 percent from a year ago, accounting for 56.4 percent from a year earlier. The rest was of non-trade nature such as inter-Korean cooperative projects and humanitarian assistance, which came to $315 million, an increase of 5.6 percent from a year earlier.
The South posted a $145 million surplus in nominal trade last year, while the North registered a $169 million surplus in actual trade, not counting the value of non-trade transactions such as humanitarian assistance.
Four hundred eighty-one companies participated in the two-way trade of 588 items.
The increase in bilateral trade was attributable to a steady rise in commercial transactions and deals on processing-on-commission arrangements as well as "non-trade" transactions under inter-Korean cooperative projects, including humanitarian assistance and provision of food loans to the North.
