North Korea-China trade corridor regains momentum amid signs of thaw

North Korean shopping street in Beijing on July 15, 2025./Lee Beul-chan

Outside the North Korean Embassy in Beijing on July 15, the so-called “North Korean shopping street” was unusually busy. Around 10 small shops, with names like Kumsusan, Myohyangsan, and Botonggang, had boxes stacked at their entrances as vans hurriedly loaded and unloaded goods. Groups of North Koreans came and went, shopping quietly.

“These stores mainly serve North Koreans on business trips or workers preparing to return home,” said a local source familiar with North Korean affairs. “As travel between North Korea and China picks up again, business here is booming.”

Many shops displayed signs advertising “packing and delivery from Beijing to Dandong,” the Chinese city on the North Korean border. Although goods like TVs and washing machines are priced higher than on Chinese e-commerce platforms, North Koreans prefer shopping here for the convenience of bundled delivery. “Although the sign says ‘Dandong,’ the packages are actually delivered all the way to Pyongyang,” the source added.

A shop inside the North Korean shopping street near the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, July 15, 2025./Lee Beul-chan

A shop inside the North Korean shopping street near the North Korean Embassy in Beijing, July 15, 2025./Lee Beul-chan

Inside one shop—roughly seven square meters in size—thick winter coats and leather shoes favored by North Koreans were prominently displayed. Shelves were lined with Korean-labeled consumer goods: lint removers, rice cookers, mobile phones, hair dye, and vacuum cleaners. When a Chosun Ilbo reporter asked the price of a coat in Chinese, the owner replied, “It’s not even a brand,” but still quoted a steep 650 yuan (about $90). In another store, two refrigerators were being packed for shipment. A staff member declined to answer questions, saying, “We’re wholesalers,” and made it clear the shop only served North Korean customers.

North Korean residents wave toward Dandong, China, from a cruise ship crossing the Yalu River from Sinuiju in April 2025./Douyin

North Korea’s prolonged border closure during COVID-19, combined with its recent diplomatic pivot toward Russia, had strained ties with Beijing. But signs of renewed engagement have become increasingly evident in recent months.

Travel between the two countries is gradually resuming. On July 16, North Korea’s state-run tourism website published a Pyongyang–Beijing train schedule for the first time in over five years. The route will operate four times a week via Dandong and Shenyang. Regular flights between Pyongyang and Shanghai may also restart soon.

Analysts say Beijing is actively restoring ties with Pyongyang in an effort to counter U.S. pressure in the region and retain strategic influence over the Korean Peninsula.

Earlier this month, the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang hosted a banquet to commemorate the 64th anniversary of the China–North Korea Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance. Kang Yun-sok, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly, attended the event, while Chinese Ambassador Wang Yajun reaffirmed Beijing’s support for North Korea’s “independent development.” Last year’s event drew only the president of Kim Il Sung University, and North Korean state media did not report on the proceedings.

There is growing speculation that Beijing may provide large-scale economic assistance ahead of the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party on October 10.

According to Chinese media reports, North Korea’s embassy in Beijing submitted a detailed report following a five-month survey of agriculture, ports, and healthcare across the country. In response, Beijing reportedly formed a “joint aid team” composed of officials from 30 provinces and cities.

A source in Beijing said there is talk of China constructing vocational training centers and supplying port equipment in cities like Chongjin and Rajin. Bilateral trade has already rebounded: from January to May, North Korea–China trade surpassed $1.03 billion, exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Trucks carrying frozen fish and Shandong sausages lined up at the border, while North Korea resumed shipments of wigs to China.

A diplomatic source in Beijing said signs of new North Korean labor inflows into China have emerged since early this year. A Yanbian University professor noted on WeChat that more North Korean workers are now seen at Hunchun’s night market, saving money to buy Huawei smartphones.

Despite these signs of thaw, some experts urge caution against reading the developments as a full-scale rapprochement. China remains wary of alienating South Korea, the United States, and Japan by visibly drawing too close to North Korea.

One symbolic indicator of the limits of the warming ties is the still-unopened New Yalu River Bridge, connecting Dandong to the North Korean city of Sinuiju. Though China has completed and recently refurbished its side of the bridge, construction on the North Korean side remains incomplete. Rumors of an opening have circulated for years, but no official timeline has been announced.

[Lee Beul-chan (Beijing)]

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