North Korea lures online shoppers

Impoverished North Korea needs foreign exchange

North Korea is offering shoppers the chance to buy goods made in the secretive communist state.

It has launched an e-commerce website in Korean, English, Chinese, Russian and Japanese that could help the country earn foreign currency.

Products for sale include machinery, building materials, vehicles and industrial art objects.

But the site appears to be suffering some teething problems. The BBC was unable to access it on Monday.

'Promoting trade'

An official at the North Korean embassy in London confirmed that the website had been launched, but said he too was having access problems.

"It is a website about our economy," the official said. "It is also promoting international trade."

The Associated Press news agency said the site sells bicycles, commemorative stamps, roller skates and uniforms for Taekwondo - a Korean martial art.

It said the website accepted credit cards.

North Korea's command economy is struggling, hit by natural disasters, poor planning and a failure to modernise.

It is reliant on imports from China for a large part of its food and energy needs.