Despite recent flooding in North Korea caused by heavy rains, the price of grain in North Korean markets has held fairly steady. The North Korean government appears to be drawing upon its emergency grain supplies to keep market prices down.
According to Daily NK’s regular market price survey, a kilogram of rice at a marketplace in Pyongyang on Aug. 4 was trading for 5,700 North Korean won, which was similar to a survey on July 21 (5,730 won).
The price of rice on the same day at a marketplace in Sinuiju, North Pyongan province was 5,800 won, or 60 won higher than the July 21 price (5,740 won).
However, the price of rice had fallen somewhat at a marketplace in Hyesan, Yanggang province. Rice was trading for 6,100 won at a market there on Aug. 4, down 200 won from the survey two weeks earlier (6,300 won).
Government hastily releases rice reserves
The apparent reason that rice prices are remaining stable despite expectations that prices would rise after the flooding is because the authorities hastened to disperse rice reserves and wartime supplies to head off a spike in price.
According to a source in North Korea recently, a decision was reached during the 22nd Emergency Enlarged Meeting of the Eighth Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), on July 29–30, to release some of the rice reserves managed by the State Affairs Commission and emergency wartime supplies stored by the Korean People’s Army. Following that decision, food was distributed throughout the country.
The State Affairs Commission — which is chaired by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and staffed by some of the country’s top officials, including the cabinet premier and the head of the WPK Organization and Guidance Department — is the highest decision-making body in the country. Since the State Affairs Commission’s rice reserves basically function as Kim’s emergency food supplies, they are reported to be much higher quality than the rice available for purchase at ordinary marketplaces.
But rather than providing the emergency rice to the public for free, the North Korean authorities are selling it for below market prices at state-run grain stores.