1. Introduction to DPR Korea Chamber of Commerce

  The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Chamber of Commerce (DPRK Chamber of Commerce) was established on August 25th  2004, as a non-governmental permanent organization. Its mission is to provide domestic trading companies and businesses with services of exchange and cooperation in the field of trade and investment by negotiating with other national chambers of commerce and organizations whilst representing and protecting their interests at home and abroad.

  DPRK Chamber of Commerce negotiates and makes agreements with international organizations, national chambers of commerce and various organizations that promote trade and investment in the context of mutual cooperation, following up with its compliances. It also organizes and launches exhibitions and business match-making, thus bringing about commercial links between  businesses and companies at home and abroad; it provides various services such as updating with current market information, goods information, consultation work, business-bridging, helping settle commercial disputes and etc.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce supplies its members with publications that carry current practices such as INCOTERMS and UCPs, which are all amended regularly by International Chamber of Commerce. It issues various certifying papers that confirms the incorporated, types of business, license of use and etc., which are all required in the processes of business activities. It issues certificate of origin and certificate of force majeure as well if a need be. 

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce has registered itself as a member of ICC in the 33rd ICC Congress held in Hungary in May, 2000, in the name of “Pyongyang Chamber of Commerce” in its earliest stage.

  DPRK Chamber of Commerce has in it a lot of domestic trading companies, exporting businesses and joint venture companies as its members, and foreign companies and businesses that aspire to having economic and trade relations with our domestic companies also have subscribed to our chamber and enjoy membership. 

  In accordance with international practice where world influential big businessmen play board members of ICC and other national chambers of commerce, the DPRK Chamber of Commerce has also established a board of governors in its chamber in 2021, with members proved helpful and active enough in the progress of chamber activities.

  The membership body is over 200 all together, at present.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce has Korea Jewelry Association which deals with issues related with production, processing and export from the viewpoint of national interests and operates exchange and cooperation with International Association of Jewelry.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce has regularly publishes journal “Foreign Trade of DPRK”.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce has a SGS representative office in Pyongyang which provides SGS inspection on export and import goods required by domestic and foreign trading companies, in close contact with SGS headquartered in Geneva, Swiss.

  This office facilitates settling disputes of quality issues by conducting SGS inspection, thus enhancing international competitiveness of export goods. In case of importing goods that need full confirmation of the quality, it undergoes SGS inspection on them, thus making it a perfect, 3rd party investigation.

  The office also helps exporting goods producing factories get international certification such as ISO9000, ISO14001, ISO22000, HACCP, GMP on the bio-security index products like foodstuff and drugs in the context of production system, quality management and environment, thus enabling them to make products conforming to the international standards and requirements of markets.

2. Summary of Major Trade and Investment Promotion Activities of DPR Korea Chamber of Commerce

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce, as a globally recognized organization, is providing active services of trade promotion and investment to domestic trading institutions and manufacturers in close contact with ICC, foreign and local chambers of commerce.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce, as a member of ICC, participated in the 4th World Chamber of Commerce Congress held in South Africa in June 2005 and the 6th World Chamber of Commerce Congress held in Malaysia in June 2009, and discussed issues related with expanding mutual cooperation and exchange between DPRK Chamber of Commerce and ICC.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce dispatched a delegation involving banking professionals to Annual Meeting of ICC Banking Committee held in Beijing, China, in April 2019 to get acquainted with constantly-varying global financial market and they gathered all those necessary up-to-date economic and technological information and distributed them to banks in our country.

   DPRK Chamber of Commerce was belonging to southeast Asia Transnational Chamber of Commerce headquartered in Singapore, yet pursuant to the ICC constitutional law,   it shifted its position to the direct member of ICC in February, 2021, thus bringing about more favorable condition and environment to further enhance external status of our Republic in the international arena and promote civil economic and trade activities.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce showed up several times in the international arena by attending virtual international conferences hosted by ICC in the midst of global pandemic, and is actively trying to provide opportunities and space for exchange and negotiations with ICC, national chambers of commerce and individual businesses.

  In April, Juche112 (2023), the DPRK Chamber of Commerce participated with 20 member companies in the Digital Trade Conference of ICC which included 900 participants- members of national chambers of commerce, economic and legal experts from 40 different countries, and ICC to learn and study current trend, concept and situation of digitalization of global trading activities, thus contributing to digital operation of individual institutions.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce concluded agreements on mutual cooperation with foreign and local chambers of commerce of Russia, China, Cuba, Thailand, Syria, Zambia etc. by unfolding active and strategic external activities, and brought about a favorable external environment for the expansion and development of external economic relations with different countries and regions.

  In particular, despite of unfavorable global pandemic from 2019 to 2023, the DPR of Korea Chamber of Commerce successfully concluded agreement on cooperation with about 70 national or local chambers of commerce including Indonesia, Mongolia, Hubei, China, San Paulo, Brazil etc.

  In February, 2023, the DPR of Korea Chamber of Commerce concluded an agreement on bilateral cooperation in a virtual meeting with China Overseas Development Association (CODA) which is playing a bridgehead role in helping Chinese businesses set out in global markets and foreign investment under the guidance of China Council of National Development and Reshape to conduct active external negotiation to realize investment projects in the fields of construction, building materials, fishery, finance, public health, technological trade, carbon trade etc.

  The DPR of Korea Chamber of Commerce is also developing economic and trade cooperation and exchange between DPRK and Russia through the operation of Korea-Russia Business Association.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce established Korea-Russia Business Association with domestic trading companies hoping for the cooperation with Russia, and is operating the association focusing on energizing export of processed products, technological trade and service trade between businesses of DPRK and Russia. It is also doing different kinds of cooperative work including pilot sales with branches of Russia Chamber of Commerce through virtual meeting.

  In July, 2023, there was a virtual meeting between members of Pyongyang Chamber of Commerce, a branch of DPRK Chamber of Commerce and Anapasi Chamber of Commerce, Russia to discuss the issue of registering products of second and third hand processing to be exported to member countries of Eurasian Economic League. This provided a realistic and practical environment for the further expansion and development of economic and trade cooperation with 6 local chambers of commerce in western part of Russia including Chechensk, Zabaicalsk, Arhangelsk in northern part, Ural, Tsumen in the middle part and Amur in far east.

  The DPR of Korea Chamber of Commerce is creating a favorable condition for member companies by conducting active external economic activities and opportunities for exchange and cooperation such as exhibition, investment presentation, business meeting, business consultation etc.

  It dispatched a big business mission composed of tens of excellent national enterprises to Torino, Italy to contribute to the success of “DPRK-EU Forum”, and also hosted “DPRK-EU Seminar on Economy” inviting tens of economists from EU including Germany, France, Austria, Sweden etc., and “DPRK-Mongol Business Seminar” inviting tens of Mongolian businesses.

  During “2010 Shanghai World Expo” from May to October, 2010, with over 100 national or government leaders and visitors from 189 countries and 57 international organizations, the DPR of Korea Chamber of Commerce installed and successfully ran “Korean Pavilion”. It won the Expo Memorial Cup rendered by the expo host and a certificate saying; “We hereby appreciate Korean Pavilion for contributing to making the expo a successful, excellent and memorable one.”

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce launched 60 business mission from 2018 to 2019, thus making about 500 investment presentations and business meetings to actively unfold trade and investment promotion.

  The DPRK Chamber of Commerce dispatched a delegation of the chamber to Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia to organize DPRK-Russia business meeting jointly with Russian Federation Chamber of Commerce. The delegation introduced DPRK’s policy on trade and its investment environment to create cooperation atmosphere between businesses of Russia and DPRK, take up its own line of  cooperation, th

  In April, 2019, the DPRK Chamber of Commerce dispatched a comprehensive business mission composed of several domestic trading companies to the international cooperative meeting hosted by Tianjin branch, China International Trade Promotion Committee, April 2019, and unfolded external activities to create trading cooperative atmosphere among businesses from China, Italy, Mexico, Poland etc.

  The DPR of Korea Chamber of Commerce will conduct active multilateral external economic exchange and cooperation with different countries all over the world, conducive to improving external environment of the country. It will also unfold various types of activities for developing trade, investment and technological cooperation , thus contributing to the successes of domestic trading institutions and production enterprises in the practice of their  economic and trading activities.