SEOUL: An international trade fair in North Korea this week may be the largest such event on record, analysts said on Tuesday, with hundreds of Chinese and other foreign vendors taking part despite sanctions pressure.

The 22nd Pyongyang Spring International Trade Fair opened on Monday with a ceremony hosted by top economic officials, North Korean state news agency KCNA reported.

More than 450 companies from North Korea, China, Russia, Pakistan, Poland and “other countries and regions” showcased a range of products at the fair, KCNA said.

That number would make it the largest trade fair hosted by North Korea, according to an analysis of state media announcements from 2007 to 2019 conducted by NK News, a website that tracks North Korean issues.

Last year, 260 companies reportedly participated in the spring fair, for example.

At least 216 Chinese companies were participating. “The numbers tie into a lot of what we’ve seen recently demonstrating real Chinese interest in pushing ahead with business opportunities in North Korea, even though technically not much can go ahead under the current sanctions regime,” said NK News.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2019