Dandong, a city in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, seems set to welcome explosive growth in the wake of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's visits to China, as people the Global Times spoke with across the city showed excitement while discussing the Northeast Asian country's much-anticipated opening-up.



In Dandong, which sits right near the North Korean border, people have mixed feelings toward the move.



Bai Guoqiang, a local tourist guide, told the Global Times that he hopes North Korea opens up, which he said would attract more visitors to Dandong, but he worries that this may push up the cost of living for local people. "If people's salaries don't rise accordingly, I guess our living standards would suffer," he said.



Bai's concerns make sense, considering Dandong's average home price recently skyrocketed to a level that local residents already can't afford.



The average home price in Dandong's New District was about 3,000 yuan ($471) per square meter at the beginning of 2018. Then home prices began to rise further in the wake of Kim's visit to China in March, and just in the past two weeks, the average home price has soared from 5,000 yuan to 7,000 yuan.



In contrast, the city's average monthly salary is currently about 3,000 yuan. "For those who earn 6,000 yuan per month, they would ponder over how to spend all their money," said a taxi driver, but that would certainly change if housing costs continue to rise.



Furthermore, some businesspeople told the Global Times that they are afraid that an influx of international investors into North Korea would squeeze their presence in the market, although they expect the country's opening-up to bring about new opportunities for them.



"Admittedly, it's hard to do business with North Koreans, given the country's undesirable business environment, especially government policies related to the planned economy. But I do not hope the country opens up, because more investors in North Korea would definitely negatively affect our company's market share," complained a Dandong businessman surnamed Li, who sells mining machines in Pyongyang, the country's capital.



Li was not alone. A North Korean businessman, who refused to give his name, spoke frankly to the Global Times in fluent English, saying that he does not want his country to open up because existing welfare services such as free schooling and free medical services could disappear afterward.



However, the Global Times also found that some Dandong residents actually imagine their city becoming Northeast China's version of Shenzhen - a thriving city in South China's Guangdong Province and an exemplar of China's own opening-up - if North Korea opens up to the outside world. Others even compared Dandong's potential to the Xiongan New Area, a rising star about 100 kilometers south of Beijing.



But despite these strong hopes, no substantial changes can be seen yet in Dandong.



In the offices of two companies that trade with North Korea, three or four employees complain about the current poor trade situation over a game of billiards and a cup of tea.



Given the low efficiency of the North Korean government, the country's opening-up may not be realized in the next several years, one of them commented, saying the closed-off country is unpredictable in this regard.



