For decades North Korea has been seen as a timewarp country, full of hungry peasants farming with handtools as the Dear Leader lives a life of luxury.

But a new affluence is burgeoning in the oppressive dictatorship, as the regime unofficially backs away from outright socialism in favour of capitalism.

For now it means the previously deserted highways through Pyongyang are seeing the occasional Audi or rebadged Chinese car.

And the new rich in the capital are all about conspicuous consumption, showing off their wealth, says UTS's Bronwen Dalton.

"The most coveted item is a fridge, but they use them as book cases most of the time because the electricity doesn't work," she told nine.com.au.

"I've been going to North Korea since 1992, and it's seeing enormous change, and I've seen it before.

"It's eerily similar to seeing South Korea going from a really poor country to this global economy."

Dr Dalton said social status is now based on how much money you have, "not on how well you've memorised the writings of Kim Il-Sung".

"There is a class now that's making serious coin out of market activity, and that's led to a boom in real estate," she said.

It's practically impossible to buy and sell property under the current laws, but bribery has allowed for a property boom in Pyongyang.

"Apartments on the first floor are really cherished because there's so many blackouts the lifts don't work," Dr Dalton said.

"You don't want a commanding view if you don't have power."

Farmers are now growing food on small-scale plots of land, as opposed to the major collective farms that were ubiquitous parts of 20 th Century communism.

As a result, output is up and farmers are selling their surpluses on the black market, or Jangmadong.

And in most cases, they are using US dollars or Chinese renminbi rather than the official legal tender.

"Now North Koreans keep their money in Chinese money, and they don't trust their own currency anymore," Dr Dalton said.

This is coming in spite of increased economic sanctions against North Korea, which has proven thus far ineffective in stopping Kim Jong-un's nuclear ambitions.

It is partly because of Kim's unshakable resolve to develop a nuclear deterrent, but also because so much of North Korea's trade is off the books.

"It seems pretty clear that we overestimate China's ability to control the borders, and there's a lot of Chinese middlemen making serious money keeping that border porous," Dr Dalton said.

"People are making money out of it, and they are finding a way."

Unfortunately for most North Koreans, the newfound affluence is located primarily in Pyongyang itself, with farmers and peasants elsewhere not seeing a substantial change in their wealth.

The official income for North Koreans is about $12 a month, but restaurants in Pyongyang are selling steaks for $60 apiece.

The Washington Post even reports a supermarket selling Australian beef at "astronomical prices".

Zara and H&M are popular clothing brands, and women are emboldened to wear brighter colours following the example of Kim's wife Ri Sol Ju.

But defector Lee Seo-hyeon said there was still a risk associated with not dressing conservatively enough.

"If your clothes are too radical or extreme, or they’re not in line with North Korean style, the ­police might take your name and then your name will be broadcast on the radio," Lee told the Post last year.