Recent research published inside North Korea points to the tightening of price regulation in the domestic economy and in trade with foreign markets.

An NK Pro analysis indicates: 

The state has substantially curtailed enterprises’ ability to unilaterally set prices, with enterprises forced to consult on a sectoral and/or regional basis. Yet regulators appear to recognize the continued role of market forces in determining prices, even as they seek to curtail the market power of particular enterprises. Recycling campaigns appear to involve some central government regulation of recycled input prices, which implies that there may have