N. Korea Doubled Coal Exports ahead of UNSC Resolution

North Korea doubled its coal exports to China just before the United Nations Security Council adopted tougher economic sanctions last month, a South Korean trade organization said Sunday.

    The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said that North Korea's overall exports to China jumped 34.1% on-year to US$256 million in November. In particular, the shipment of North Korean coal and other export items targeted by the UN sanctions surged 99.6% to $147 million last month.

    The UNSC passed a resolution on November 30 to cut North Korean mineral exports to punish Pyongyang for its fifth nuclear test in September, South Korea's News Agency (Yonhap) reported.

    China included North Korean iron ore, coal and iron in its imports ban in April but had applied exceptions to trade related to people's livelihoods. Coal is the North's single largest export item, and China accounts for nearly 40% of the shipments. 

    KITA speculated that Pyongyang moved to jack up its coal exports ahead of the implementation of the tougher UNSC resolution. In November, North Korea's China-bound coal exports skyrocketed 112.1% to $139.4 million, the association noted. Its iron ore exports jumped 45.1% to $4.99 million, while iron shipments rose 96.9% to $1.43 million.