North Korea market prices surge again as grain and fuel costs climb

North Korea’s market prices surged again in May 2026, reversing a brief lull and deepening economic hardship for ordinary North Koreans across the country.

According to Daily NK’s regular market price survey, a kilogram of rice traded at 32,700 North Korean won at a Pyongyang market on May 10, a 5.5% increase from the previous survey conducted on Apr. 26. The price spike was even sharper in Hyesan, the capital of Ryanggang province, where rice reached 33,900 won per kilogram, an 8.3% increase over the same two-week period.

Corn prices also climbed. Corn, a dietary staple for lower-income North Koreans, sold for 9,200 won per kilogram in both Pyongyang and Sinuiju in North Pyongan province on May 10, up 5.7% and 5.9% respectively from the previous survey.

Grain prices had held relatively steady from December through January following last year’s harvest, before surging more than 20% in March and continuing upward since. Prices briefly stabilized in mid-April before renewed upward pressure returned this month.

Yuan exchange rate jumps sharply

Currency exchange rates moved higher as well. The North Korean won-to-dollar rate at Pyongyang markets reached 72,100 won on May 10, a 4.3% increase from two weeks prior. Similar increases were recorded in Sinuiju and Hyesan. The yuan rate climbed even faster: in Sinuiju, the won-to-yuan rate hit 8,920 won on May 10, a 7.2% jump over the same period.

Sources attribute the foreign currency demand to expectations that trade controls will ease following U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to China. Informal cross-border trade between North Korea and China, including state-coordinated smuggling operations in which North Korean authorities move goods through unofficial channels, has been under intensified pressure in recent weeks as Chinese customs and law enforcement stepped up enforcement ahead of the visit.

A source with knowledge of cross-border trade told Daily NK that Chinese authorities have been taking a notably cautious stance on the North Korea trade issue in the lead-up to the Trump visit, with stricter customs and police enforcement sharply curtailing informal smuggling channels. The expectation that controls will relax after May 15, when Trump’s China visit concludes, appears to be sustaining foreign currency demand.

Fuel prices also rose sharply over the two-week period. Gasoline reached 82,000 won per kilogram at Pyongyang markets on May 10, a 7.9% increase from two weeks earlier, while diesel climbed 5.5% to 76,100 won per kilogram. Analysts inside North Korea point to a convergence of factors: the ongoing suppression of state-coordinated smuggling has tightened fuel supply, while the start of the rice-transplanting season has driven up demand for fuel to power agricultural machinery and move goods.

With border controls still in place and agricultural demand at a seasonal peak, sources inside the country expect upward price pressure to continue in the near term. The concern is particularly acute given that the real purchasing power of North Korean workers and farmers has already weakened considerably, meaning any further increase in prices will weigh more heavily on daily life.

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