Total reported fuel exports to North Korea remain stable despite plummeting shipments from China during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to recent data. Fuel exports hover around 2,500 tons per month, with inflows mostly backed by Russia.

According to Russia’s May export data — which were self-reported to the United Nations last week — the total supply of fuel remained stable for five straight months, despite Chinese shipments bouncing back in May. This is the longest period of stable fuel shipments since the U.N. began publishing such data in 2017.

The relative stability of fuel, hovering around half