A North Korean official has told the United Nations General Assembly that his government will expand economic exchanges in various areas with all countries on the basis of independence, equality and mutual benefit.

The North's official Korean Central News Agency quoted the delegate's remarks from a speech before a General Assembly committee meeting on economy and finance last week.

The official said that global economic cooperation should respect the development policies of emerging countries and consider their desire for empowerment.

He called for practical aid in the form of development loans and efforts to resolve developing countries' foreign debt problems.