South Korea and the Democratic People 's Republic of Korea (DPRK) agreed on Saturday to cooperate in light industry and natural resources exploration, local media reported.

According to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, the two sides reached an agreement in DPRK's border city of Kaesong after a two- day meeting there. South Korean experts will be allowed to conduct an on-site survey of three zinc and magnesite deposits in DPRK's mountainous northeastern region for 12 days from July 28. In return, South Korea will ship 5 million tons of polyester fabric worth 800,000 U.S. dollars to DPRK on July 25.

Under the agreement, DPRK accepts the raw materials for light industry production at the price South Korea suggested. The DPRK will pay the costs for transportation, cargo working and demurrage, while South Korea is to bear all the costs for shipping, insurance and using ports, Yonhap said.

South Korea estimated these incidental expenses would be within 4 million U.S. dollars, equivalent to 5 percent of the total cash price of the items to be supplied to DPRK, it said.

Source: Xinhua