North Korea appears to be sincere about normalizing an inter-Korean industrial zone in the communist country that has gone back online after a suspension of more than five months, a Seoul source said Tuesday.

The Gaeseong Industrial Complex reopened in mid-September, after operations came to a halt in early April due to Pyongyang's unilateral withdrawal of all its workers from the 123 South Korean companies there amid heightened inter-Korean tension.

The unification ministry source told reporters that North Korean officials assigned to the joint secretariat in charge of running the complex have been at odds over outstanding issues, such as Pyongyang's verbal assault on South Korea's president, but they have remained faithful to the Sept. 11 pact.

The pact is a follow-up to an inter-Korean agreement reached in August that calls for the reopening of the Gaeseong complex and outlines details for the running of a standing secretariat.

The secretariat, manned by government officials from both sides, acts as the official liaison office between Seoul and Pyongyang on all matters related to Gaeseong.

"The two sides meet on a daily basis to exchange views and the impression we have gotten so far is that the North Koreans are very much interested in normalizing operations at Gaeseong," said the Seoul official, who works with the secretariat.

"North Koreans were favorable to the move by South Korean lawmakers to visit Gaeseong late last month because they thought the move could benefit the companies."  

Many small-sized companies have complained that they are operating at 50-60 percent of capacity, mainly because potential buyers are weary of placing orders. Such developments have raised concerns that companies may opt to pull out of the factory zone, the last remaining economic link between the two Koreas.

All operations at Gaeseong came to a stop in early April after the communist country pulled out all of its 53,000 workers assigned to the South Korean companies in the North Korean border town, citing political and military provocations from the South.

The official added that South Korean officials from the secretariat regularly meet businessmen and listen to complaints, and North Korean officials have also taken such steps.

The secretariat, which set sail on Sept. 30, is responsible for supporting the joint management committee that runs the Kaesong complex.

Seoul has nine people working around the clock to receive complaints from South Korean companies and report to Seoul on developments that take place at the factory park. The total is expected to be increased to 12 to deal with greater workloads.

The North Korean side currently has a staff of five and plans to increase the number to eight in the near future. (Yonhap News)