North Korea tightens control of local market prices since pandemic: report

NK News – North Korea News · Jun 24, 2026

North Korea has expanded the state’s role in regulating consumer goods prices since the COVID-19 pandemic as it continues to control economic activity within its borders, according to a Japanese journalist. Marketplaces largely set their own prices until around 2020, but are now increasingly influenced by local governments following the pandemic, Jiro Ishimaru, head of […]