S.Korea Accepts Processed Goods from the North

The South Korean government has accepted the first imports of

finished products manufactured in North Korea since it banned trade

and commerce with the communist state in response to the sinking of

the Navy corvette Cheonan.

The Unification Ministry said it allowed shipments of four processed

products on commission from the North. They include some 20 tons of

garlic, US$17,000 worth of clothing and $250,000 worth of terminal

plates.

With the approval, experts speculate that more shipping of processed

goods from the North may make their way to the South.

North Korea earlier expressed its willingness to continue operations at

the joint Kaesong Industrial Complex while banning South Korean

companies from taking factory equipment out, saying that they can

only be removed after going through a tax office in the industrial zone.

Experts say Pyongyang's move, which contradicts its initial threat to

shut down the cross-border route leading to Kaesong, is prompted by

fear of losing its key source of hard currency and jobs of some 43,000

North Korean workers there.

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