In North Korea, Almighty US Dollar Still Reigns Supreme
February 8th, 2023
Via NK News, commentary on how repeated currency reforms have eroded trust in the DPRK won, making foreign money essential for many transactions: North Korea has long allowed an unusual degree of private trade in foreign currency for a communist bloc country, and a new study has shone a light on just how common it […]
Read more »North Korea Mines New Revenue Sources in Its Trade With China
January 27th, 2023
Via The Diplomat, a report on the latest data which shows Pyongyang is continuing to adapt to U.N. sanctions, while trade is beginning to rebound from pandemic lows: North Korea has spent much of the pandemic financing its weapons programs and imports with stolen cryptocurrency. However, with trade between North Korea and China expanding in 2022, there […]
Read more »Russia, China: Bringing North Korea In From The Economic ‘Cold’?
January 25th, 2023
Courtesy of East Asia Forum, a look at North Korea and the potential for improved economic growth in 2023: At the beginning of 2022, North Korea’s strategic position looked bleak. The regime clung to its zero-COVID claim, leading to an almost total closure of the border with China and bringing trade to record lows. There were strong indications that […]
Read more »North Korean Famine: Worst Since 1990s
January 20th, 2023
Via 38North, a report on the growing famine in North Korea: North Korea is dealing with a complex humanitarian emergency that has food insecurity at its core.[1] As of August 2022, both quantity and price data point to a deteriorating situation, made worse by the regime’s choice to self-isolate in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Food […]
Read more »North Korea’s Shadow IT Industry
January 2nd, 2023
Via The Diplomat, an article on how North Korea earns foreign currency through a shadow IT industry: The South Korean government recently announced a warning regarding North Korea IT personnel with the goal of preventing North Korea from earning foreign currency through cyberspace. North Korean IT personnel reportedly account for a growing portion of the country’s […]
Read more »Does North Korea Sit Atop Significant Oil Reserves?
January 2nd, 2023
Via 19FortyFive, a report on North Korea’s oil potential: One of North Korea’s most enduring domestic challenges has been its inability to reliably meet domestic energy demands – both in terms of electricity generation and the provision of fuel for commercial, industrial, and military vehicles. North Korea imports oil products from its neighbors – primarily […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.