Over 450 foreign and domestic companies are taking part in this week’s 22nd Pyongyang Spring International Trade Fair, North Korean state media reported Monday, an over 50% increase compared to last year’s event and figures which could make it the largest such event on record.

Firms from the DPRK, China, Russia, Pakistan, Poland, and other countries are participating, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, in an article marking the beginning of the twice-yearly fair on Monday.

With foreign and domestic companies selling wares related to “metal, electronics, machinery, building materials, transport, public health, light industry and food and