Macroeconomics

1. [U.S. Tariffs] President Trump has signed a document temporarily adjusting tariffs on certain imported steel, aluminum, and copper products. These adjustments take effect on June 8 and are set to expire on December 31, 2027. Specifically, the *ad valorem* import tariff applicable to harvesters and certain other agricultural machinery has been reduced from 25% to 15%, while the threshold for the local content ratio required for imported steel, aluminum, and copper products has been lowered from 95% to 85%.

2. [Strait of Hormuz Navigation] Iranian media reported on June 2 that the application system for vessel transit permits through the Strait of Hormuz is now fully operational. Global shipowners and captains may submit transit applications at any time, 24 hours a day. According to reports, vessels can submit their applications for Strait of Hormuz transit via an electronic system established by the governing authority. Once the application is approved, the vessel will be granted a transit permit.

3. [EU CPI] Preliminary data released by Eurostat indicates that, driven by rising energy and service prices, the Eurozone Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 3.2% year-on-year in May. This increase—higher than the 3.0% recorded in April—further reinforces market expectations that the European Central Bank will implement a modest interest rate hike in June.

4. [South Korea CPI] Data released by Statistics Korea shows that the CPI rose by 3.1% year-on-year in May, marking the largest increase since March 2024. The core CPI rose by 2.5% year-on-year, representing the largest increase since February 2024.

Plastics and Rubber

1. [PE] On June 2, Sinopec-SK (Zhonghan) Petrochemical’s Phase I HDPE unit (300,000 tons/year capacity) was producing grade 5502W, while its LLDPE unit (300,000 tons/year capacity) remained shut down.

2. [PP] Daqing Petrochemical’s PP unit (100,000 tons/year capacity) was operating at normal load; the ex-factory reference price for drawing-grade T30S was raised by 150 RMB to 9,670 RMB/ton.

3. [NBR] On June 1, Lanzhou Petrochemical announced its list prices for Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR): in the Northwest, North China, and East China regions, the quoted price for Lanzhou Petrochemical’s NBR grade N41E was 17,600 RMB/ton—a decrease of 500 RMB/ton compared to the previous period.

4. [Natural Rubber] On June 2, market prices for natural rubber raw materials in Thailand’s production regions rose: Ribbed Smoked Sheets (RSS) were quoted at 90.25 THB/kg (up 1.75 THB/kg); field latex was quoted at 84.20 THB/kg (up 0.50 THB/kg); and cup lump was quoted at 73.30 THB/kg (up 0.50 THB/kg).

5. [Natural Rubber] Data indicates that during the first four months of 2026, Indonesia’s total exports of natural rubber (excluding compound rubber) amounted to 440,000 tons—a year-on-year decrease of 23%. Specifically, exports of technically specified rubber (TSR) totaled 430,000 tons (down 23% year-on-year); exports of Ribbed Smoked Sheets (RSS) totaled 10,000 tons (down 9% year-on-year); and exports of latex totaled 30 tons (remaining flat year-on-year).

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