The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in North Korean global shipments during 2020. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from North Korea.

1. Electrical machinery, equipment: US$50.1 million (32% of total exports)
2. Iron, steel: $21.8 million (13.9%)
3. Mineral fuels including oil: $12 million (7.6%)
4. Plastics, plastic articles: $11.2 million (7.1%)
5. Machinery including computers: $7.4 million (4.7%)
6. Clocks, watches including parts: $6.8 million (4.3%)
7. Vehicles: $6.4 million (4.1%)
8. Ores, slag, ash: $5.6 million (3.6%)
9. Other chemical goods: $5.2 million (3.3%)
10. Pharmaceuticals: $3 million (1.9%)

North Korea’s top 10 exports accounted for 82.6% of the overall value of its global shipments in 2020.

Electrical machinery and equipment was the lone grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 148% from 2019 to 2020.

Leading the decliners among the top 10 North Korean export categories were vehicles (down -86.9%), clocks and watches including parts (down -86.2%), and machinery including computers (down -81.7%).

At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, North Korea’s most valuable exported good was electrical insulators excluding fittings (11.2% of North Korea’s global total). Close behind in second place were electric storage batteries (11%) trailed by electrical energy (7.6%), iron ferroalloys (6.8%), phone system devices including smartphones (4.8%), plated or coated items made from flat-rolled iron or non-alloy steel (4.5%), assembled watch components (4.3%), cars (3.2%) and tungsten ores or concentrates (2.9%).

The following types of North Korean product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.

In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.

1. Electrical machinery, equipment: US$49.7 million (Up by 227.1% since 2019)
2. Iron, steel: $21.7 million (Down by -54.8%)
3. Machinery including computers: $6.1 million (Down by -84%)
4. Vehicles: $5.8 million (Down by -87.8%)
5. Ores, slag, ash: $3.7 million (Down by -78.9%)
6. Aluminum: $2.1 million (Up by 101.4%)
7. Other chemical goods: $1.5 million (Reversing a -$10 million deficit in 2019)
8. Zinc: $640 (Down by -5.6%)
9. Articles of iron or steel: $548 (Down by -86.3%)
10. Books, newspapers, pictures: $311 (Down by -82.8%)

North Korea has highly positive net exports in the international trade of electrical machines. In turn, these cashflows indicate North Korea’s strong competitive advantages under the electrical machinery and equipment category.

North Korea incurred an overall -$401.2 million trade deficit for 2020, down by -82.2% from the -$2.25 billion deficit one year earlier.

Below are exports from North Korea that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country North Korea’s goods trail North Korean importer spending on foreign products.

1. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: -US$84.3 million (Down by -42.8% from 2019)
2. Tobacco, manufactured substitutes: -$39.7 million (Down by -57.5%)
3. Milling products, malt, starches: -$38.7 million (Down by -51%)
4. Sugar, sugar confectionery: -$35 million (Down by -40.4%)
5. Plastics, plastic articles: -$24.8 million (Down by -90.3%)
6. Rubber, rubber articles: -$23.2 million (Down by -61.2%)
7. Pharmaceuticals: -$22.3 million (Down by -51.8%)
8. Manmade filaments: -$17.2 million (Down by -90.9%)
9. Cereals: -$16.7 million (Down by -78.7%)
10. Organic chemicals: -$16.2 million (Down by -64.8%)

North Korea has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the product category entitled animal or vegetable fats, oils and waxes.

North Korean Export Companies

Not one North Korean corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.

According to global trading e-commerce platform Alibaba, the following are examples of exports-related companies from North Korea.

• Elpis Corporation (engine oil)
• Groon Co. Ltd (metal scrap including electronics scrap)
• Hai Dan (cosmetics)
• Kim’s Enterprise & Supplying Co. Ltd (construction machinery)
• Korea Ryonghung Trading Corporation (anthracite coal, lead)
• KQ Earphone (earphones, headphones)
• Pishon Technology (LCD panels)