Sharp-eyed viewers of CCTV may have noticed the recent adverts promoting the port of Dandong on China’s border with North Korea as a new northeastern gateway to global markets. That campaign goes hand-in-hand with the recent decision to set up a free trade zone on North Korea’s Hwanggumpyong Island, an undeveloped island adjacent to Dandong, where a tax-free zone of 11 square kilometers will be set up. China has reportedly signed a 50 year lease agreement to develop the island.

Dai Yulin, secretary of the Dandong committee of the Communist Party of China, said in the China Daily that the area will help boost FDI, turning the zone into a hot investment destination.

“Hwanggumpyong Island and Dandong city will become the hot ground for investors worldwide, as vast business opportunities exist on the island, DPRK’s first open zone where international trade projects related to the DPRK will be developed,” Dai said. “Projects in sectors of marine engineering, special steel, colored steel and car audio will soon settle in HwanggumpyongIsland and Dandong city.”

North Korea and China have been busy redeveloping trade links between the two in signs these latest efforts may have more long lasting value. China would also be unlikely to view any cessation of commercial operations to Chinese manufacturers operating in the zone lightly. The two nations have recently built a highway linking the Chinese city of Hunchun to road access into North Korea, and regional trade between the two has been increasing.

Source: Asia Briefing

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