SunSirs: Building Materials Industries Bulk Commodity Intelligence (May 8, 2026)

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.

Building Materials

1. [Corrugated Paper] Nine Dragons Paper’s Leshan facility plans to shut down its PM38 machine for 13 days between May 25 and June 6; the affected product category is corrugated paper.

2. [Paper] Liansheng Paper (Longhai) Co., Ltd. announced that, effective May 9, 2026, prices for its Grade A Kraft Liner, Grade A3 Kraft Liner, T-Paper, and High-Strength Corrugated Medium will increase by 50 RMB per ton. Specific pricing is subject to official quotation sheets.

Century Sunshine announced that, effective May 6, 2026, prices for its White-Top Kraft Liner and Coated White-Top Kraft Liner products will increase by 100 RMB per ton over current base prices.

3. [Pulp] As of May 7, 2026, sample inventories at China's major pulp ports stood at 2.371 million tons. This represents an accumulation of 19,000 tons compared to the previous period—a month-on-month increase of 0.8%—indicating a shift toward inventory accumulation at major pulp ports during the current cycle.

4. [Glass] On May 7, Hebei Xinli Glass Co., Ltd. (Hebei Xinli Line 2)—which has a designed capacity of 650 tons per day—recently switched its production from clear glass to "F-Green" glass.

Langfang Jinbiao Glass Co., Ltd. (Line 1)—which has a designed capacity of 600 tons per day—switched its production from "Grey-Tea" glass to "European Grey" glass on May 3.

Chongqing Jinfuyuan Glass Co., Ltd. (Electronics Line)—which has a designed capacity of 450 tons per day—drained its furnace on May 2.

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