Markets reshape daily life in North Korea but an uprising remains unlikely

Markets reshape daily life in North Korea but an uprising remains unlikely

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 03, 2026 North Korea's informal markets have become central to daily survival and are quietly changing how people relate to the state, yet analysts say the country still lacks the conditions needed for a popular uprising against the Kim regime. A new study argues that the roots of these changes lie in the 1990s "Arduous March" famine, when the breakdown of the Public Distribution System forced citizens to trade food and b…