North Korea still claims to be a communist state too,

It's more interesting to look at things like the USSR before, during and after the New Economic Policy period. Or, to look at the USA at the time when policing was outsourced to the Pinkertons. Or, at the UK when firefighting was a for-profit enterprise.

It's not technically communist (yet), but it is supposed to be socialist ("with Chinese characteristics").

Tbf, Maoism was certainly more aligned with communist principles, though with their entering into the global capitalist marketplace they've certainly morphed quite a bit. They still maintain a unilateral top down structure and control, while allowing their citizens to benefit from certain elements of capitalism.