N. Korea's economy shrank 1.1% in 2015: BOK

North Korea's economy is estimated to have contracted 1.1 percent last year amid negative growth in most industries, South Korea's central bank announced Friday.

The Bank of Korea has issued an annual report on the estimated gross domestic product of one of the world's most secretive nations.

It said the communist country's GDP shrank 1.1 percent in 2015 from a year earlier, the first negative growth since 2010.

The bank cited a drop in crop and mining output by 0.8 percent and 2.6 percent, respectively.

The manufacturing sector suffered a 3.4 percent decline. The electricity, gas and tap water business also tumbled 12.7 percent due to a fall in hydroelectric power production attributable to a drought, according to the BOK.

But the construction field posted a 4.8 percent rise, and the service sector grew 0.8 percent.

The North's mining and manufacturing industries accounted for 32.7 percent of its GDP, down 1.7 percentage points from 2014.

The BOK put the North's gross national income at 34.5 trillion won ($30.3 billion), 45 times less than that of South Korea. The North has around 25 million residents, half of the South's population.

The data also showed that the North's trade volume totaled $6.25 billion, down 17.9 percent on-year.

Exports slipped 14.8 percent to $2.7 billion, and imports shed 20 percent to $3.56 billion.

The North is under heavy U.N.-led economic sanctions for its nuclear and missile activities.

Since no accurate economic data from North Korea are available, the BOK said the statistics are based on estimates using methodologies applied to gauge South Korea's own economy. Thus, it's not desirable to directly compare the data with those of other foreign nations, added the bank. (Yonhap)