China provides 200,000 tons of fertilizer in exchange for rights to North Korea’s abundant natural resources (Linked to project ID#63008)

During May 2011, when North Korean leader Kim Jong-il visited China, the Chinese Government agreed to provide 200,000 tons of fertilizers free of charge (captured via Project ID#63063) and 500,000 tons of corn at a discounted rate (captured via Project ID#63008) in exchange for rights to North Korea’s natural resources. The estimated monetary value of the fertilizer donation is $95,100,000. The Chinese Government agreed to sell the 500,000 tons of corn for half of the prevailing international price. The estimated monetary value of the corn donation is $77,575,000. In exchange, North Korea reportedly agreed to hand over 50 percent of extracted rare earth minerals free of charge to China, with the rest to be sold to China at international prices.

Additional details

1. To estimate the monetary value of the fertilizer donation ($95,100,000), AidData takes the international price of a ton of urea fertilizer in August 2011 ($475.50) and multiplies it by 200,000 tons. To estimate the monetary value of the corn donation ($77,575,000), AidData first takes the international price of a ton of maize in August 2011 ($310.30) and multiplies it by 500,000 tons, and then divides this figure by two. 2. North Korea is estimated to have around 20 million tons of rare earth minerals, which are vital in the production of high-tech goods.

Number of official sources

0

Number of total sources

3