North Korea is encouraging its beauty-conscious middle-class women to choose domestic cosmetics over foreign brands in an effort to boost self-reliance as international sanctions deepen. Promoting home-grown beauty has been a political strategy since the days of state founder Kim Il Sung, but has become more focused under his foreign-educated grandson, Kim Jong Un. The international popularity in recent years of South Korea's K-beauty trend - innovative cosmetic products with natural ingredients such as ginseng and snail slime - has added momentum, say defectors who fled the North and experts who study the isolated state.

The airline had not shied away from letting the market know that it has international ambitions. Speeding up the delivery to induct the mandatory 20 aircraft earlier than planned and placing order for a mix of A321 and B787-9, were all preparations for its international foray.

On Wednesday, prices soared over 2 percent to breach the $1,500 barrier for the first time since April 2013.

E-cigarettes have not yet been classified as a drug while the recent media reports about the government planning to ban the sale of these products have been influenced by the big tobacco lobby, QuitCig founder Ameer Bahl told CNBCTV18.com in an exclusive interview.