Envoys from the United States and North Korea meet in China next week to discuss U.S. financial sanctions on Pyongyang's foreign assets.
The U.S. Treasury Department says Friday its top negotiator, Daniel Glaser, will lead a delegation to Beijing Tuesday.
The delegation will discuss Pyongyang's request for Washington to lift sanctions imposed for North Korea's alleged money laundering and counterfeiting activities.
Disputes over the restrictions have largely been blamed for holding up six-nation talks about North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
Media reports say negotiations aimed at dismantling this program will resume in Beijing early next month.
The talks took on greater urgency last October, after Pyongyang tested a nuclear weapon.
The United States on Friday banned exports of luxury items to North Korea, in compliance with U.N. trade sanctions imposed following the nuclear test.
The ban on luxury items - including electronic equipment, jewelry and high-end cars - aims to target government elite and their guests, who enjoy far more privileges than the country's impoverished citizens.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
