Macroeconomics

1. [Foreign Exchange Reserves] According to statistics released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, as of the end of April 2026, my country's foreign exchange reserves stood at US$3,410.5 billion—an increase of US$68.4 billion from the end of March, representing a growth of 2.05%.

2. [Shipping] The Ministry of Natural Resources announced that during the first quarter, the marine shipbuilding industry demonstrated strong growth momentum. All three key indicators—new orders received for marine vessels, vessels completed, and vessels on order (backlog)—saw comprehensive increases. Compared to the same period last year, these figures rose by 116.7%, 33.3%, and 30.0%, respectively, with China maintaining its position as the global leader in international market share.

3. [Automobiles] Data released by the China Automobile Dealers Association indicates that the Automobile Consumption Index for April stood at 80.8, showing a slight month-on-month improvement. It is projected that overall vehicle sales in May will see a significant increase compared to April.

4. [U.S. Tariffs] On May 7, the U.S. Court of International Trade issued a ruling declaring that the legal basis for a policy imposing a 10% global import tariff was invalid. On February 20, President Trump had announced—pursuant to Section 122 of the *Trade Act of 1974*—the imposition of a "10% global tariff on all countries" for a period of 150 days, intended to replace tariffs that had previously been ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court.

5. [U.S. Initial Jobless Claims] Data released by the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday showed that for the week ending May 2, initial jobless claims rose by 10,000 to a total of 200,000—coming in below market expectations of 205,000. Meanwhile, continuing jobless claims fell to 1.77 million in the preceding week, marking a two-year low.

Agricultural Products

1. [Soybean Meal] For the week ending April 30, 2026, U.S. net sales of soybean meal for the 2025/26 marketing year totaled 312,100 tons. This represents a 6% increase from the previous week and a 16% increase over the four-week average. Net sales for the 2026/27 marketing year totaled 23,700 tons, up from 300 tons one week prior. These figures align with market expectations.

2. [Rapeseed] According to EU data, EU rapeseed imports for the 2025/26 marketing year to date have declined by 29% year-on-year. While the import shares from both Australia and Ukraine have decreased, the share from Canada has increased. As of May 3, 2026, Ukraine remained the European Union's leading supplier of rapeseed, with shipments reaching 1.44 million tonnes—a year-on-year decrease of 39.2%—while its market share declined from 39.6% to 33.7%.

3. [Sugar] According to the latest data from Thailand's sugarcane industry, as of May 3 in the 2025/26 crushing season, the cumulative volume of sugarcane crushed in Thailand had reached 105.86 million tonnes. The average sugar content of the cane stood at 12.94%, yielding a sugar recovery rate of 11.33%, resulting in a cumulative sugar output of 11.997 million tonnes. Specifically, white sugar production totaled 2.359 million tonnes, raw sugar production reached 9.165 million tonnes, and refined sugar production amounted to 474,000 tonnes.

4. [Grains] The Ukrainian Ministry of Economy reported that, as of May 5, spring sowing operations in Ukraine were more than two-fifths complete, with sowing progressing at a faster pace in the central and southern regions. To date, farmers have sown 2.609 million hectares of grain and legume crops, accounting for 43% of the planned sowing area. This includes 177,900 hectares of spring wheat, 687,300 hectares of spring barley, 135,400 hectares of oats, 1.3467 million hectares of corn, and 5,200 hectares of millet.

5. [Corn] The Ukrainian Ministry of Economy released a report projecting that Ukraine's end-of-season grain stocks for the 2025/26 marketing year will rise to 11.3 million tonnes—significantly higher than the 4.9 million tonnes recorded in the 2024/25 year. Specifically, end-of-season wheat stocks for 2025/26 are projected at 4.9 million tonnes, up from 1.7 million tonnes the previous year; barley stocks are projected at 1.5 million tonnes, up from 700,000 tonnes; and end-of-season corn stocks are projected at 4.5 million tonnes, up from 2.3 million tonnes the previous year.

6. [Soybeans] An inventory report released by Statistics Canada indicates that, as of March 31, 2026, Canada's total soybean inventory stood at 1.5 million tonnes—a year-over-year decrease of 45.7%. This total comprises 541,000 tonnes in on-farm stocks (down 69.4% year-over-year) and 955,000 tonnes in commercial stocks (down 3.3% year-over-year). The primary reasons for this decline in soybean inventories include a 11.4% year-over-year decrease in total supply to 7.4 million tonnes, coupled with a 6.6% increase in exports, reaching 4.7 million tonnes.

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