Macroeconomics

1. [Reverse Repurchase Agreement] The People's Bank of China (PBOC) announced a tender notice for outright reverse repurchase agreements in the open market. To maintain ample liquidity in the banking system, on December 5, 2025, it will conduct 1 trillion RMB/ton of outright reverse repurchase operations through a fixed-quantity, interest rate, and multiple-price bidding method, with a term of 3 months (91 days).

2. [US Initial Jobless Claims] Initial jobless claims in the US unexpectedly fell to 191,000 last week, the lowest level since September 2022, indicating continued resilience in the job market.

3. [Bank of Japan] The Bank of Japan is almost certain to raise its policy rate from 0.5% to 0.75% at its December meeting, and the Japanese government is expected to tolerate this move. This would be the PBOC's first rate hike since January of this year.

4. [Shipping] This year, the average daily cost on major global crude oil shipping routes has seen the largest increase, reaching 467%, while transportation rates for commodities such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) and iron ore have increased more than fourfold and more than twofold, respectively.

Rubber and Plastics

1. PC (Polycarbonate): Pingmei Shenma's 100,000 ton/year polycarbonate (PC) unit has completed a one-month maintenance shutdown and is gradually restarting.

2. PE (Petroleum Equipment): On December 4th, Guangzhou Petrochemical's PE unit reported that its full-density polyethylene (PE) units, lines 1 and 2, which underwent major maintenance shutdowns on October 13th, are scheduled to resume operation on December 8th.

3. PS (Polystyrene): Guangzhou Petrochemical's 60,000 ton/year PS production unit, which was previously shut down for maintenance, is expected to restart around December 6th.

4. Butadiene Rubber: Shandong Yulong Petrochemical Co., Ltd.'s 150,000 ton/year butadiene rubber unit underwent a temporary maintenance shutdown starting December 3rd, 2025.

5. Natural Rubber: On December 4th, the price of natural rubber raw materials in Thailand fell: smoked sheet was quoted at 60.25 baht/kg, down 0.25 baht/kg; latex was quoted at 55.00 baht/kg, down 0.50 baht/kg; cup lump was quoted at 52.00 baht/kg, down 0.75 baht/kg.

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