Paradoxically, those social groups that in the past have borne the brunt of the regime's persecution have gained most from this growth in private trade.

ECONOMIST: North Korean society is turbulent and in flux

As evidence that this policy has borne fruit, Celso Amorim, the foreign minister, points out that most of Brazil's trade is now with developing countries, thus anticipating Mr Obama's advice that the world should not rely on the United States as consumer of last resort.

ECONOMIST: Brazil's foreign policy: Lula and his squabbling friends | The