Inter-Korean trade tumbles amid growing tensions

SEOUL, July 21 (Yonhap) -- Trade between South and North Korea plunged during the
first half of this year amid growing tensions on the peninsula, Seoul's customs
office said Tuesday.
Inter-Korean trade amounted to US$649.85 million during the January-June period,
down 26.6 percent from $884.79 million in the same period a year earlier,
according to the report by the Korea Customs Service.
Tensions have grown since North Korea fired a long-range rocket on April 5, a
move that was unanimously condemned by the U.N. Security Council. In May,
Pyongyang upped the tension further by conducting its second nuclear test.
The missile and nuclear tests aggravated already deteriorating relations between
the two Koreas. Ties have worsened since South Korean President Lee Myung-bak
took office in early 2008, pledging to get tough on the North's atomic weapons
program.
On-year trade between the two Koreas declined for 10 consecutive months since
September last year. First-half trade stood at just 36 percent of last-year's
total amount, according to the report.
Experts say that inter-Korean trade is likely to fall further in the months ahead
as tensions are still running high. The UNSC recently imposed a travel ban on a
number of North Korean officials and has moved to freeze their assets for their
involvement in the North's nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Trade between the two Koreas, which amounted to $328.65 million in 1999, had
surged more than five-fold to $1.79 billion in 2007, when the leaders of the two
nations met for the second time. Last year, inter-Korean trade inched up to $1.82
billion, according to the customs office.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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