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From VOA Special English, |
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this is the Economics Report. |
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North and South Korea reopened |
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their joint factory zone this week. |
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Lines of trucks and cars |
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crossed South Korea's northern border Monday |
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on the way to Kaesong, North Korea. |
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About 800 South Korean workers and their supervisors |
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entered the jointly operated Kaesong Industrial Complex. |
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They brought materials and parts |
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to restart production for the first time in months. |
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South Korean managers expressed happiness at returning to work. |
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Ji Yoon-tae is deputy chief of a South Korean company in Kaesong. |
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He says it has been very hard |
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while the factories were closed. |
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From now on, he says, |
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he hopes everything works out well, |
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and the factory zone comes back to life. |
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In April, North Korea removed about 53,000 workers |
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from the joint manufactoring effort. |
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Their withdrawl resulted from military tensions |
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with South Korea and the United States. |
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South Korean companies say they lost about $1 billion |
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from the suspension of factories. |
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The industrial area produces cloths, watches, |
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and parts for electronic products. |
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After months of negotiations, |
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the two Koreas last week reached a deal to reopen the area. |
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They agreed to set up a joint committee to settle future problems. |
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Officials from the two sides have been holding weekly meetings |
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to discuss other details. |
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The reopening is seen as the most important sign of |
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warming relations between North and South Korea |
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since the North carried out missile and nuclear tests. |
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Choi Kyong-lim is South Korea's Deputy Minister of |
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Trade, Industry and Energy. |
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He told reporters in Seoul that the government |
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hopes many Chinese companies will invest in Kaesong. |
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He says it is important for Chinese companies |
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to use North Korean labor at Kaesong |
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where pay is low but productivity is high. |
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China is North Korea's closest ally. |
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It also is believed to have some limited influence |
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over the government in Pyongyang. |
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Cho Bong-hyun is with the Economic Research Center of |
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the Industrial Bank of Korea. |
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He says Kaesong offers better guarantees |
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than other investments in North Korea. |
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He says investment in other cities has more risk. |
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And that's the Economics Report from VOA Learning English. |