FACTBOX: A look at North's Korea's international finances
(Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council passed a resolution on Friday expanding sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear weapons program.
Here is a look at the international finances of North Korea, whose yearly GDP is about $20 billion, according to estimates by the South's Bank of Korea.
INTERNATIONAL BANKING
The U.S. Treasury brought North Korea's international finances to a virtual halt in 2005 by cracking down on a Macau bank suspected of aiding the North's illicit financial activities. Other banks, worried about being snared by U.S. financial authorities, steered clear of the North's money.
TRADE PARTNERS
North Korea's two biggest trade partners are China, with $2 billion in annual trade, and South Korea, with about $1.8 billion. The neighbors are worried about instability in the North spilling over borders and will not push for measures designed to topple Pyongyang's leaders. Studies indicate their trade with North Korea did not decline after U.N. sanctions were placed on North Korea in 2006 following a missile test and Pyongyang's first nuclear test.
Beijing, the closest thing that Pyongyang can claim as a major ally, is reluctant to accept any new sanctions that would significantly undercut its economic ties to North Korea.
South Korea is worried about a sudden collapse in North Korea and an estimated bill of $1 trillion to absorb its destitute neighbor, which could wreck its own economy.
The North relies on global food handouts to feed its people and energy aid from China to power the country. Continued...




