Macroeconomics

1. [Reverse Repurchase Agreements] The People's Bank of China (PBOC) issued a tender announcement for open market reverse repurchase agreements, indicating that to maintain ample liquidity in the banking system, it will conduct a 900 billion RMB reverse repurchase operation on January 15th using a fixed quantity, fixed interest rate tender, and multiple price bidding method. The term is 6 months (181 days).

2. [Imports and Exports] According to customs statistics, my country's total foreign trade imports and exports reached 45.47 trillion RMB in 2025, a 3.8% increase. Exports totaled 26.99 trillion RMB, a 6.1% increase; imports totaled 18.48 trillion RMB, a 0.5% increase.

3. [Automobiles] The latest data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) shows that in 2025, automobile production and sales reached 34.531 million and 34.4 million units respectively, representing year-on-year increases of 10.4% and 9.4%. Production and sales reached a new historical high, maintaining the top position globally for 17 consecutive years.

4. [US Tariffs] The White House announced that starting on the 15th, a 25% ad valorem import tariff will be imposed on certain imported semiconductors, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and related products.

5. [Federal Reserve Beige Book] The Federal Reserve's Beige Book showed that in eight of the Federal Reserve's twelve districts, overall economic activity showed slight to moderate growth, three districts reported no change, and one district reported a slight decline. This represents an improvement compared to the previous three reporting periods (when most districts reported little change). Most banks reported slight to moderate growth in consumer spending during this period, mainly due to the holiday shopping season.

Plastics and Rubber

1. [ABS] Zhejiang Petrochemical's ABS plant has a total capacity of 1 million tons/year, with a current operating rate of 90%.  Maintenance is planned for the 300,000 tons/year production line on January 16th.

2. [PE] On January 14th, Maoming Petrochemical's PE plant status: #1 LDPE unit shut down on January 5th, scheduled to restart on January 24th; #2 LDPE unit producing 2520D; the full-density unit producing M2720A; the HDPE unit started major maintenance on November 24th, scheduled to restart on January 31st, 2026. Maoming Petrochemical's LDPE (South China Branch) 2426H is quoted at 9,000 RMB/ton, an increase of 300 RMB/ton.

3. [Natural Rubber] According to the General Administration of Customs, China imported a total of 953,000 tons of natural and synthetic rubber (including latex) in December 2025. From January to December 2025, China imported a total of 8.525 million tons of natural and synthetic rubber (including latex), a year-on-year increase of 16.7%.

If you have any enquiries or purchasing needs, please feel free to contact SunSirs with support@sunsirs.com.