North Korea — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of North Korea: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
North Korea is in Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea. It covers 120,538 sq km. Terrain: mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; wide coastal plains in west, discontinuous in east. Climate: temperate, with rainfall concentrated in summer; long, bitter winters.
| Capital | Pyongyang |
|---|---|
| Population | 26,402,841 (2025 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $15.416 billion (2023 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $600 (2023 est.) |
| Unemployment | 2.9% (2024 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 73.5 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 36.2 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 63.2% of total population (2023) |
| Government | dictatorship, single-party communist state |
| Independence | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) |
| Languages | Korean |
North Korea’s GDP is $15.416 billion (2023 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $16.447 billion (2023 est.). See where North Korea ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
No single event defined Jul–Sep 2026. The country's position is the product of long-cycle forces — geography, trade, neighbours — all of which held steady.
Momentum at zero is not stagnation; it is the accurate record of a quarter without a catalyst.
- What our model rewards: unemployment near 2.9% — work for whoever wants it
- What drags it down: graded on patchy data (57% complete) — read the score as an order of magnitude
Coal, Iron ore, Graphite, Copper, Zinc, Lead, Hydropower.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 54.7% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 36.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 0.6% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 62.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 23.83 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Primary energy consumption (OWID) | 184.5 TWh (2023) |
| Energy per capita (OWID) | 6,984 kWh per person (2023) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2023.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Key industries | military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism |
|---|
The CIA World Factbook does not publish export or import figures for North Korea.
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Kim Jong Un — Supreme Leader. State Affairs Commission President KIM Jong Un (since 17 December 2011)
North Korea maintains 43 embassies abroad, hosts 21 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, UN Geneva, UNESCO Paris. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 43 |
|---|---|
| Foreign missions hosted | 21 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, UN Geneva, UNESCO Paris |
Source: Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index 2024 (released 2024-02-25), https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/; Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions of North Korea', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_of_North_Korea; '... in North Korea', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_in_North_Korea
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Coastal — 2495 km of coastline. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 81 + 8 heliports (registration prefix P) |
| Major seaports | Ch'ongjin, Haeju Hang, Hungnam, Najin, Nampo, Senbong, Wonsan |
| Railways | 7435 km |
Major airports
Pyongyang Sunan International Airport (FNJ) — Pyongyang; Orang (Chongjin) Airport (RGO) — Hoemun-ri; Sondok Airport (DSO) — Sŏndŏng-ni; Wonsan Kalma Airport (WOS) — Wonsan.
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28)
| Political system | one-party communist state |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for North Korea.
Historical timeline of North Korea
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of North Korea — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is North Korea's power score?
North Korea has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.