A group of government officials participate in a group exercises on the first official "sports day" of the new year at the Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, Jan. 12, 2020. AP

North Korea's economy grew 1.8 percent year-on-year in 2019, with growth expected to continue in the next few years despite international sanctions, according to a U.N. report.

The North's estimated gross domestic product (GDP) marked its first increase in three years after backtracking 4.2 percent and 3.5 percent in 2018 and 2017, respectively, the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development's World Economic Situation and Prospects 2020 stated, Thursday

The report forecast the growth trend to continue at 2.2 percent this year and 2.8 percent next year, though it did not elaborate further on its estimates.

North Korea's average GDP growth between 1997 and 2011 stood at 0.8 percent.

North Korea signals tougher stance against US 2020-01-20 16:43  |  North Korea
The estimate spiked to reach 3.9 percent in 2016 but reported a 4.2 percent contraction in 2018 amid multilayered sanctions imposed over the North's nuclear and missile tests.

The report also said North Korea's consumer price inflation is estimated to have jumped 4.8 percent last year, with the uptrend expected to continue by 5 percent this year and 4.9 percent next year.

North Korea has been calling for stepped-up efforts to achieve wealth and prosperity without outside help, saying self-reliance was the best policy against "hostile forces' sanctions."

In a New Year's Day announcement, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said that he has no expectation of the U.S. lifting sanctions anytime soon and ordered his people to make a "frontal breakthrough" to build a self-reliant economy. (Yonhap)