Pyongyang, North Korea - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un petted puppies and kittens with his delighted daughter as they toured a new Pyongyang housing district.

The Hwasong area, formerly mostly farmland, is a newly developed residential district with about 40,000 housing units built through a series of projects launched in 2022 under Kim's orders.

Accordingly, "various service bases to contribute to improving the wellbeing of the inhabitants are stepping up the preparations for inauguration," it said.

Kim, with his teenage daughter Ju Ae, visited a pet shop in the district.

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"Households rearing pets are increasing in the capital city and local areas nowadays," he reportedly said. "I saw to it that a new shop was built to sell pets and various accessories and offer the specialized service."

Images released by state media showed a visibly delighted Ju Ae watching cats with her father and petting one perched on a tower while Kim sits just behind her.

In another photo, Kim cradles a white puppy as officials looked on with broad smiles, with Ju Ae beside him.

"Referring to the production of various kinds of pet-care tools, feed and veterinary medicines, he (Kim) stressed the need to take measures to increase production in the future," KCNA said.

Kim and his daughter also visited a musical instrument store, with state media images showing the duo looking at guitars and saxophones."

In February, South Korea's national intelligence service said that Pyongyang appears to have started the process of designating Ju Ae as leader Kim's successor.

This perception has been stoked by a string of recent high-profile outings including watching a test of nuclear-capable rocket launchers, firing a pistol and trying out the country's new battle tank in large-scale military drills.