Among the many people who make North Korea run are hordes of roving merchants from China. They travel to and from the socialist state practicing their own brand of capitalism: snapping up everything from cigarettes to mines. If they notice a price discrepancy between places or a resource to be exploited they seize the opportunity, providing a needed boost to the economy along the way.
There are at least seven trading posts by land between North Korea and China, along the northern provinces of Hamgyong-pukto, Ryanggang-do, Chagang-do and P'yongan-pukto. The largest is Sinuiju, which is opposite the Chinese city of Dandong. Linking the border towns is a customs outpost, highway and railroad.
After six days in North Korea, instead of boarding a plane we decided to leave from Pyongyang Station on an international train. It would take us to Dandong via Sinuiju.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
It’s 230 kilometers from Pyongyang to Sinuiju. We are boarding the train to begin our five-and-a-half-hour journey.
North Korean Tour Guide
Passengers on this train include North Koreans from the public and private sectors who do business with China. Also embassy staff and their families traveling to Beijing, along with Chinese who are permanent residents of North Korea.
After the train departs Pyongyang and reaches the border city of Sinuiju, it crosses the Yalu River then heads direct to Beijing via Dandong. The full journey takes 22 hours. Carriages are divided into compartments with up to six beds each. Passengers can sit or lie down.
Before departure, the train inspector took interest in us. He rarely sees Taiwanese passengers.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
How many carriages are for North Koreans?
Chinese Train Inspector
Six large ones. They’re all this large. There are two for Chinese.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
Can we pass through those two?
Chinese Train Inspector
Yes.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
What are the numbers?
Chinese Train Inspector
Twelve and 13. After you pass those, you reach the North Korean carriages.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
Where are the Chinese carriages?
Chinese Train Inspector
Here.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
Twelve and 13?
Chinese Train Inspector
Yes, 12 and 13.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
Others are mixed?
Chinese Train Inspector
The others are the North Korean carriages.
The train left Pyongyang traveling at 40 kilometers an hour. The real North Korean landscape opened before our eyes.
Photography was banned the entire way, so we had to be discrete.
On the train were many travelers from outside China and North Korea. Besides us, passengers who bought a soft sleeper ticket mostly consisted of Chinese purchasing agents who could speak Korean. To pass time on the long journey, they smoked and chatted in the aisles.
Train Staff
They trade with North Korean businesspeople. Each finds something useful, such as goods from the sea or metal ore.
In the carriage to our right was this person who completed a gold mine purchase.
Chinese Purchasing Agent
(Do they only interact with Chinese?) Mainly Chinese along with some Russians, but not many purchasing agents. (So each person does something different. Like you two do gold.) Yes. (You do gold?) Yes. (How much can you excavate in a month? How much gold can you mine in a month?) We just recently made our investment. (For how much?) Over a million Chinese yuan. (Over one million.) We just started. (How much profit do you expect?) We’re not sure. Some mines are good. (How much?) It varies. You need to see how much deposits there are.
To our left in the carriage was a rare sight - a team from a state-run Chinese company. It buys 10,000 tons of iron ore pellets from North Korea monthly.
Chinese State Employee
(How many people are underneath you?) More than 50. (How many?) 56. We’re a state-run company. (What do you mean by state-run company?) It’s the state’s. (The country asked you to come here? What about the person I was just talking to. He is here independently.) Most are independent. (They are.) The vast majority is, but we’re from a state-run company.
The Chinese purchasing agents on the international carriages are known as “profiteers.” They specialize in traveling between China and North Korea seeking profits in both countries. They trade in cigarettes, alcohol, food and clothes. Sometimes they transport everyday goods needed in North Korea and exchange them for minerals North Korea has in abundance, whether it’s coal, iron or gold. But both sides prefer to use the Chinese yuan, euros and U.S. dollars profiteers bring to buy raw materials. North Korean won cannot be exchanged in international markets. The currency is not even accepted by North Korea’s two main allies, China and Russia. North Korea therefore needs foreign currency so it can acquire goods from overseas.
The profiteers see good opportunity trading between China and North Korea. Risks are high and so is the chance for profits.
Anne Hu
FTV News Chief
When there is opportunity for profits, there will be people in pursuit. Those capable of doing business in North Korea have many options, whether aboveboard or under the table. For North Korea, each deal presents the chance for a breakthrough. This is Anne Hu, Ku Te-chuan and Johnson Lee in an exclusive report from North Korea.
任何國家都不可能一切供需自給自足，都需要對外採購交易，但是北朝鮮自遭到國際制裁以來，許多國家不願、也不敢跟這個國家交易，敢適度公開支援的，唯有中國和俄羅斯，因此也衍生出專門在兩國間從事交易的【倒爺】跑單幫，他們兩邊經商，從中獲利，尤其通曉如何避開對北朝鮮買賣的高風險。來看民視採訪小組在中朝邊境的【倒爺經貿】獨家直擊。
北朝鮮鄰接中國的邊境，北從咸鏡北道開始，經過兩江道，慈江道，乃至平安北道，至少有七個和中國能通陸路的邊境貿易口岸，其中又以中國丹東對口的新義州規模最大，具有海關功能，公路，鐵路都通
結束六天採訪，採訪小組不搭飛機，改從平壤火車站，搭乘國際列車，準備經由新義州離境，進入中國丹東
[[民視新聞部經理 胡婉玲]]
“從平壤到新義州，有230公里距離，我們現在上車，要五個半小時的車程”
[[朝鮮國旅解說員全成玉]]
“這是我們國內，那個去中國出差的，是公務去的也有，還有是代表處，北京也有代表處，家屬親戚，基本上都是公務去的乘客，還有呢，住在這裡的中國人常住，也可以坐這列車去中國”
因為這班國際列車從平壤出發，到達邊境城市新義州之後，跨過鴨綠江，再從中國的丹東直達北京，全程時間需要二十二小時，因此有多達六個軟鋪車廂，也就是坐臥兩式的包廂
開動前，列車檢查員，罕見來自台灣的旅客，對我們也相當好奇
[[民視新聞部經理胡婉玲]]
“有幾個專屬朝鮮車廂呢”
[[中國籍列車檢查員]]
“六大個，都這麼大的，專屬中國車廂就兩個”
[[民視新聞部經理胡婉玲]]
“兩個，那我們可以經過嗎”
[[中國籍列車檢查員]]
“可以”
[[民視新聞部經理胡婉玲]]
“那是第幾車廂”
[[中國籍列車檢查員]]
“第十二 十三，那過了就是朝鮮車了”
[[民視新聞部經理胡婉玲]]
“那專屬中國車廂是哪幾車廂”
[[中國籍列車檢查員]]
“就這個”
[[民視新聞部經理胡婉玲]]
“十二跟十三”
[[中國籍列車檢查員]]
“對 十二 十三”
[[民視新聞部經理胡婉玲]]
“其他就混了”
[[中國籍列車檢查員]]
“其他那邊就是朝鮮車了”
列車以四十公里的時速離開平壤，沿途，朝鮮的真正景緻，毫無遮掩地盡入眼底
因為整段車程是禁絕攝影的，因此採訪小組在拍攝的時候，很是小心，低調
我們發現這趟列車當中，有不少中朝兩國以外的國際觀光客，尤其購買特級包廂座位的乘客，除了我們採訪小組之外，還是以能通朝語的中國買辦居多，漫漫旅途，他們總愛在走廊上抽菸聊天
[[列車服務員]]
“小買賣，跟朝鮮做買賣的，(小買賣)，個人啊，找點東西，弄點那個，他們是弄海貨的，弄金屬的”
在我們右車廂這位，剛完成朝鮮金礦採購出境
[[中國買辦]]
“(他們只跟中國人打交道)，中國人多，朝鮮人，俄羅斯也有，但是做買賣的少，(所以每個人都做的不一樣，兩位都是做黃金)，喔，是，(做黃金)，嗯，(是一個月可以開採多少)，啊，(一個月可以開採多少黃金) ，剛來投資，剛來投資，(那您投資多少) ，一百多萬人民幣，(一百多萬) ，剛開始，(那大概有幾倍的利潤)，那不一定，也有的多，(有多少)，那不一定，你看看它儲藏量多少”
在我們左車廂的，則是少見的中國國營企業團隊，向北朝鮮採購鐵砂，一個月一萬噸
[[中國國營買辦]]
“(你手底下有多少人)，五十多個人，(多少)，五十六個人，我們是國營企業，(國營企業，所謂國營企業是)，國家的，(國家請你來這邊(北朝鮮) ，那跟他們，剛才我跟他一直聊的，他們是個人(個體戶) )，大部分都個人，(大部分都個人)，絕大部分是，就我們是國營
在這班國際列車中的中國個體戶，就是當地俗稱的「倒爺」，他們專門進出中朝兩地，兩地經商獲利，但買賣的可不僅限於菸，酒，食品，衣物，有時候是倒爺運送朝方所需要的民生物資品，換取北朝鮮豐富的煤，鐵，金等礦物，以物易物，但較受倒爺和朝方共同歡迎的，是倒爺持著人民幣，歐元，美金等外幣，去採購原料，讓朝鮮賺取外匯，因為朝幣在國際貨幣市場根本兌換不了，就連最友好的中國和俄國也都不承認，朝幣在外匯市場是無效貨幣，北朝鮮亟需外幣來採購物資
倒爺的中朝貿易，看來機會好，風險高，獲利也高
[[民視新聞部經理 胡婉玲]]
“利之所趨，必然有人爭逐，跟北朝鮮經商，有本事的人，各有路線，有檯面上的，也有檯面下的，但對北朝鮮而言，這每條線都為他們創造突破的機會”
文章出處 ：民視英語新聞
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