North Korea growth topped 3% for third straight year in 2025: Seoul

SEOUL: North Korea's economy grew more than 3 per cent for a third straight year in 2025, South Korea's central bank estimated on Friday (Jul 31), as Pyongyang continues to deepen economic and military ties with Russia.The Bank of Korea (BoK) has published annual estimates of the North's economy since 1991, based on its own intelligence and trade data because Pyongyang does not release official statistics.The isolated North's real gross domestic product expanded 3.5 per cent to 38.26 trillion won (US$26.6 billion) last year, the Bank of Korea said in its report.Pyongyang has deepened economic and military ties with Russia, supplying troops and munitions for Moscow's war in Ukraine in exchange for financial support, food, energy and military technology, analysts say. "The expansion of econo