Seoul - North Korean leader Kim Jong Il attended a lunar New Year's concert in the capital Pyongyang, state-controlled media reported Tuesday as speculations persist about his health.

Kim was accompanied by senior officials of the ruling Workers Party and top military officials, the KCNA news agency said.

The report didn't specify when and where the performance took place. The lunar New Year fell on Monday.

The audience cheered when Kim appeared in the auditorium and the leader expressed satisfaction over the performance given by the state merited chorus, KCNA said.

Last Friday, Kim held his first meeting with a foreign guest since he reportedly suffered a stroke in August, welcoming a senior Chinese Communist Party official in Pyongyang, China's official Xinhua news agency said.

KCNA released photographs of the meeting showing a healthy-looking Kim and said Chinese envoy Wang Jiarui, international head of party's Central Committee, delivered greetings and a letter from Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Neither report gave details about the discussion or Kim's health.

Kim's repeated absences in the past year from official events fuelled speculation about his health. The South Korean intelligence service reported the 66-year-old leader of the reclusive Stalinist state suffered a stroke in mid-August.

Kim's meeting with the Chinese official was seen in South Korea as a sign of his recovery. (dpa)