China ups N Korea aid

China is increasing economic engagement with North Korea by sending aid such as food, fuel, factory equipment and goods to keep the country's faltering economy going, the Asian Wall Street Journal reported, quoting US officials. On one day, the burgeoning trade included gasoline, freezers, huge spools of cable and flatbeds of industrial valves. US officials said the increased economic engagement, investment and trade are aimed at encouraging the North to undertake economic reform and maintain stability. But at the same time, the US said the aid would delay the six-party anti-nuclear talks with Pyongyang.