Macroeconomics

1. [LPR] Authorized by the People's Bank of China, the National Interbank Funding Center announced that on August 20, 2026, the Loan Prime Rates (LPR) were: 3.00% for the 1-year tenor and 3.50% for the tenor of over five years. Both rates remained unchanged from the previous month and will remain in effect until the next scheduled release.

2. [Excavators] According to the China Construction Machinery Association, sales of excavators of all types totaled 19,521 units in July 2026, a year-on-year increase of 13.9%. Of this total, domestic sales reached 7,608 units (including 41 electric excavators), up 4.13% year-on-year, while exports totaled 11,913 units (including 62 electric excavators), up 21.2%. From January to July 2026, total excavator sales reached 171,841 units, a year-on-year increase of 24.8%. Domestic sales accounted for 86,633 units (including 227 electric excavators), up 18.8% year-on-year, and exports totaled 85,208 units (including 197 electric excavators), up 31.7%.

3. [US Treasuries] The US Department of the Treasury announced on August 19 that it would expand the scale of liquidity-support repurchase operations for long-term nominal coupon-bearing Treasury securities (specifically the 10-year and 20-year tenors). The cap for a single operation will be raised from the previous $2 billion to at least $4 billion. This adjustment takes effect on September 9 (local time) and will continue through the end of the current quarter (November 4, 2026).

4. [UK CPI] The UK's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.9% year-on-year in July, up from 2.6% in June and marking the highest level since March of this year; rising energy bills were the primary driver. Core CPI inflation remained unchanged at 2.6% year-on-year, holding steady for the third consecutive month, while services sector inflation fell to 3.4% from 3.6% in June. 5. [Japan Imports/Exports] Japan's exports in July rose 23.2% year-on-year, exceeding the expected 20.1% and the previous figure of 19.3%; imports rose 27.8% year-on-year, exceeding the expected 25.1% and the previous figure of 25.4%.

Agricultural Products

1. [White Sugar] On the morning of August 19, Yunnan sugar producers and distributors raised their quotes in the Kunming market to 5,010–5,050 RMB/tonne (ex-warehouse Kunming), an increase of 30 RMB/tonne from the previous day.

2. [White Sugar] A notification issued by the Indian government stipulates that sugar distributors with monthly consumption exceeding 10 tonnes must limit their inventory to a 15-day supply; this order takes effect on September 1 and remains valid until November 30.

3. [Grains] Monitoring data from the Russian Grain Union (RGU) shows that during the first 10 days of August, Russia's exports of major grains (including wheat, corn, and barley) totaled 976,400 tonnes, down 22.2% year-on-year. Wheat exports fell 18.1% to 801,500 tonnes from 978,300 tonnes in the same period last year; barley exports dropped 30% to 146,500 tonnes from 209,800 tonnes; and corn exports fell 138% to 28,300 tonnes from 67,300 tonnes.

4. [Soybeans] Data from SECEX indicates that the pace of Brazilian soybean exports so far in August is higher than the level seen during the same period last year. From August 1 to August 14, Brazil's soybean exports totaled 4.69 million tonnes, compared to 9.33 million tonnes in August 2025.

5. [Palm Oil] Data from the Southern Peninsular Palm Oil Millers' Association (SPPOMA) shows that palm oil production in southern Peninsular Malaysia fell by 3.38% month-on-month during the period of August 1–15, 2026; specifically, the fresh fruit bunch (FFB) yield decreased by 4.49%, while the oil extraction rate (OER) rose by 0.21%.

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