Zhimeitong | International Highlights

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01

North America

[US bulletproof backpack manufacturer sales soared 800%] After the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, American parents frantically snapped up bulletproof backpacks, resulting in a surge in sales of related products, with prices even as high as $400. The CEO of a company that sells bulletproof equipment said sales of the company's related equipment have soared 800% in recent days. Another company that makes bulletproof panels that fit into backpacks says their sales have grown by 300 percent.

[Amazon executive jumps to become CEO of logistics startup] Amazon executive Dave Clark, who unexpectedly announced his departure last week, is about to become CEO of logistics software startup Flexport. Clark, who spent 23 years at Amazon, was the architect of its sprawling logistics business. Clark will serve as co-CEO for six months with founder and current CEO Ryan Petersen. Bidson will then become executive chairman next year, leaving Clark, 49, as CEO alone. Data show that Feixiebo was valued at $8 billion in January this year, and has raised $2.3 billion so far. Amazon’s rival Shopify has also invested in the company. Feixiebo provides global supply chain management software that connects shipping and freight operators with freight forwarders and other related entities.

[U.S. makes the first anti-subsidy sunset review final ruling on amorphous silicon fabrics] The US Department of Commerce issued an announcement saying that the first anti-subsidy fast sunset review final ruling was made on amorphous silicon fabrics imported from China (Amorphous Silica Fabric). , ruled that the cancellation of the countervailing duty in this case would lead to the continuation or reoccurrence of subsidies for the products involved in China at a subsidy rate of 48.94% to 165.39%.

[World Bank cuts global economic growth forecast to 2.9% in 2022] The World Bank released the latest "Global Economic Outlook" report, saying that due to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict intensifying the impact of the new crown epidemic on the global economy, the global economic growth forecast in 2022 was lowered to 2.9% %, with the risk of stagflation.

[Inflation is Americans' top economic concern] A recent Gallup survey found that inflation has become Americans' top economic concern, surpassing other issues such as low wages and high housing costs. Due to the rising cost of living, fewer Americans feel confident about their financial situation. The sharpest declines in income were among high- and low-income groups. High-income households tend to own more financial assets such as stocks and bonds, and an inflationary environment (especially when coupled with rising interest rates) can erode returns on these assets. Low-income households, on the other hand, are more likely to be struggling. In fact, a 2017 report found that 60 percent of Americans don't have $500 in savings, and with that in mind, it's easy to see a rise in food or gas prices cause concern.

[Analyst at ING Bank: The dollar is expected to remain strong before the Fed meeting next week] Before the Fed's policy meeting next week, the dollar should remain in the 102-103 range. Volatility in the U.S. stock market last month cast doubt on whether the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates to 3.25%, but recent stock market stability and encouraging U.S. economic data support the view that the Fed is still fully tightening policy. The Fed's next Wednesday meeting will release a dot plot of its rate forecasts, which should support expectations that the Fed's policy rate will hit 3% in 2023. So the dollar will remain strong ahead of next week's Fed meeting.

[The problem of excess inventory continues, and the U.S. retail industry faces challenges] In the early days of the epidemic, in order to solve the challenges of the supply chain, retail companies purchased a large number of goods. With the end of the epidemic, the rapid changes in the demand side have led to the current excess inventory in the US market. In this regard, some retail companies have to clear their inventory through discounts.

Target said it has canceled some orders and started discounted clearances, and the company's profits will fall this year. Big Lots, a home furnishing department store, said recent purchase orders will be canceled because the company has placed too many orders for garden equipment and outdoor furniture. Macy's inventory is up 17% from a year earlier, and the company expects to use markdowns to dispose of excess inventory in the coming months.

[Walmart’s online shopping pickers and physical cashiers are equal] Walmart U.S. CEO said: “There are almost 200,000 people” picking orders now, and this number continues to grow, “It can be said that as of now, For a year or so, this has become our largest group of workers. Before that it was cashiers.”

The change underscores the shift in U.S. retail to online and spot pickup. This trend has been accelerated by the epidemic and has been widely welcomed by consumers. It also allows Walmart and other retailers to invest in new shopping and delivery methods. The rise of self-checkout lanes has also led to fewer cashiers.

[Spotify expects annual revenue to reach $100 billion in 10 years] Spotify said on Wednesday that it expects annual revenue to reach $100 billion in the next 10 years. Spotify is expanding its podcasts and audiobooks business. Expansion is expensive, but the company promises high-margin returns on expensive expansion. Spotify's annual revenue in 2021 will be about $11.4 billion, which equates to an eight-fold increase in annual revenue over 10 years if the company's goals are met. Not only that, but Spotify expects the company's gross margin to climb to 40% within 10 years, and its operating margin to 20%.

After a weeks-long standoff, Twitter’s board plans to comply with Musk’s demands to provide access to its entire “Firehouse” database, people familiar with the matter said A data stream of over 500 million tweets is posted every day. Sources said the "Firehouse" data could be available as early as this week. About two dozen companies currently pay for access to the database, which includes not only a real-time record of tweets, but also the device on which they tweeted, as well as information about the tweeting account.

[Organization: The global semiconductor market is expected to grow by 5% in 2023 to reach US$679.6 billion] The World Semiconductor Trade Statistics Association (WSTS), which is composed of major semiconductor manufacturers, released data on June 7 that the semiconductor market is expected to increase by 5% in 2023 compared with 2022. % to $679.6 billion. Although the growth rate has slowed, it has surpassed the previous year for the fourth consecutive year. The global semiconductor market in 2022 is expected to be $646.4 billion, up $45 billion from the previous forecast. The 2021 fixed value is $555.8 billion, a 26% increase over 2020. WSTS expects that in 2022, both the logic chips and memory used for computing, which have supported the previous rapid growth, will slow down. Both will grow 31% in 2021 from the previous year, while in 2023 logic chips will grow 7% year-on-year and memory will grow 3% year-on-year.

02

EU region

[European Commission approves energy price restriction mechanism in Spain and Portugal] The European Commission finally approved the price restriction mechanism jointly formulated by the governments of Spain and Portugal to deal with rising energy prices. The mechanism stipulates that the price of natural gas used for electricity generation will be capped below 40 euros per megawatt hour initially and 50 euros for the first 12 months of the mechanism's entry into force. Previously, the European Commission preliminarily passed the draft energy price restriction mechanism formulated by Spain and Portugal. The draft was officially approved on the 8th. The Spanish government will officially issue the energy price restriction mechanism decree on the 9th. Effective from today.

[Germany's suspension of Russian gas purchases caused the German people to lose billions of euros] Russia has stopped exporting natural gas to the company on May 12 after the German government announced that it would "temporarily take over" the German branch of Gazprom. After the takeover, the German side had to find other alternatives at a high price to continue fulfilling the contract with the city utility and regional suppliers. Those involved predict that the extra costs will eventually be passed on to users, and are expected to cost German consumers 5 billion euros a year.

03

other areas

[Pakistan initiates the first anti-dumping sunset review investigation on China-related sulfonic acid] Pakistan National Tariff Commission issued the latest announcement of Case No. 49/2016, in response to the representatives of Pakistan's sulfonic acid industry Tufail Chemical Industries Limited and Tufail Multichem Industries (Pvt.) Limited An application filed on March 16, 2022, to initiate the first anti-dumping sunset review investigation on Linear Alkyl Benzene Sulphonic Acid originating in or imported from mainland China, India, Indonesia, Iran, South Korea and Taiwan, China . The investigation period of this case is from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2021. The Pakistani tax number of the product involved is 3402.1110. The products involved are mainly made of straight-chain alkyl benzene, sulfur and caustic soda, and are mainly used to vulcanize a variety of substances, such as paraffin in the preparation of detergents, as well as in the production of washing powder, dishwashing liquid and other industrial cleaners. During the investigation of the case, the current anti-dumping duties remain in effect. The announcement takes effect from the date of publication. The final result of the review is expected to be made within 12 months.

[Pakistan launches anti-dumping investigation on vinyl/polyvinyl chloride flooring in China] Pakistan National Tariff Commission issued case No. 62/2022, in response to the application submitted by Pakistani manufacturer Asia Vinyl and Rubber Industries on April 1, 2022, against the origin of Anti-dumping investigation was initiated on vinyl/polyvinyl chloride flooring (/PVC Flooring) imported from or imported from China. The products involved are vinyl/polyvinyl chloride floors with a thickness of 1 mm to 5 mm, cut to length into planks and tiles, and are used in households, commercial places, medical institutions and offices. The Pakistani tax number of the product is 3918.1000 . The dumping investigation period in this case is from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021, and the damage investigation period is from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2021. Unless otherwise postponed, it is expected that the preliminary ruling will be made 60 to 180 days after the filing of the case.

[UK house prices still rising due to lack of supply] Despite slowing growth, UK house prices hit a record again in May, with the average cost of a house rising by 10.5% a year to 289,099 pounds (about 362,539 US dollars). While prices rose for the 11th month in a row, it was the slowest rate of growth since the start of the year and was 1% slower than in April, the Bank of England said. The head of Britain's largest mortgage lender said the imbalance between property supply and demand remained the main reason behind the continuous rise in house prices. He also said that the UK housing market is already showing signs of cooling, with overall buying demand falling compared to last year due to inflationary pressures.

[Report shows: Brazil's extreme poverty increased by about 14 million] The latest survey report released by the Brazilian Food and Nutrition Security Network on the 8th local time shows that currently about 33.1 million people in Brazil are in extreme poverty and hunger, an increase from the data released in 2021. to about 14 million, back to the level of the 1990s. According to the report, about 15% of households in Brazil are currently facing hunger. 125.2 million Brazilians are somewhat food insecure, a figure equivalent to 58.7% of the country's population. Compared to 2020, food insecurity increased by 7.2 percent. Compared with 2018, the increase reached 60%.

[Hungary’s CPI in May rose by more than 10% year-on-year, and the inflation level hit a new high in more than 20 years] According to data released by the Government Statistics Office, Hungary’s CPI in May rose by 10.7% year-on-year, hitting a new high since 2001. At the same time, core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 12.2% to its highest level since 1998. At the same time, the deputy governor of Hungary's central bank said that it will continue to raise interest rates by 30 basis points per month to curb price increases, and said that monetary tightening will continue into the second half of this year.

[South Korea will fully lift entry quarantine restrictions from today] South Korea's Central Epidemic Prevention Countermeasures Headquarters stated on the 8th that all entry personnel, regardless of whether they are vaccinated against the new crown or not, regardless of nationality, will be exempted from isolation from that day. As of the previous day, South Korea only allows those who have completed the entire vaccination process to be exempted from quarantine, and those who have not been vaccinated must be quarantined for 7 days after entering the country. As a result, those who have been quarantined after entering the country can also be released from quarantine on the same day when the test result is negative.

[Japan's economic contraction in the first quarter was less than expected and the recovery seems to regain momentum] Japan's economy contracted less than previously estimated at the beginning of the year, and the recovery from the epidemic began to regain momentum at the end of the first quarter. Japan's revised data on Wednesday showed gross domestic product fell 0.5 percent on an annualized basis in the three months to March. Economists had expected a decline of 1.1%, compared with the initial value of a decline of 1%. An upward revision in private inventories was one of the main factors helping to narrow the contraction in the economy. Business spending was revised down in Wednesday's report after a report last week showed that business investment slowed in the January-March period. At present, as consumer confidence in outbound spending has recovered after the lifting of epidemic prevention restrictions, analysts expect the economy to return to moderate growth in the second quarter.

Zhimeitong | Logistics Highlights

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[Baltic dry bulk index fell for three consecutive days due to weak demand for all types of ships] The Baltic dry bulk index fell on the 8th, due to weak demand for all types of ships. The Baltic index for overall dry bulk fell 104 points, or 4.1%, to 2,410, hitting a more than one-month low. The capesize index fell 211 points, or 7.9%, to 2,457. Average daily earnings for capesize vessels fell $1,748 to $20,380. The panamax index slipped 68 points, or 2.4%, to 2,747. Average daily earnings for panamax vessels fell $616 to $24,723. The Supramax index fell 47 points to 2,585.

Zhimeitong | Domestic Highlights

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[ The Central People's Government has established 132 cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones across the country in 6 batches ] According to the Director of the Department of Foreign Trade of the Ministry of Commerce, cross-border e-commerce is now widely welcomed by consumers from all over the world and is in the midst of innovative development. window period. The Central People's Government has set up 132 cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones across the country in six batches.

[ Ministry of Commerce: Confident and capable of maintaining stable foreign trade growth ] The Central People's Government has issued a package of 33 policies and measures to stabilize the economy in 6 areas, superimposed on the recently introduced foreign trade support policies, which will definitely promote the growth of foreign trade. At the same time, my country has more and more FTA partners, which will also play a very important role in promoting the development of my country's foreign trade. In general, we are confident and capable of maintaining stable growth in my country's foreign trade and improving the quality in the future.

Zhimeitong | E-commerce highlights

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[ eBay Announcement: Instructions on Items Selling in Europe Need to Meet CE Requirements ] eBay announced that, for the legitimate interests of buyers and sellers, eBay requires sellers to list items that comply with the relevant laws and regulations of the local market. In Europe, many items need to be marked with the letters "CE" to indicate that the product is certified to meet high safety, health and environmental protection requirements. Please ensure that the products you sell to the European market meet the relevant requirements. For items that do not meet the requirements, eBay may remove the listing or take restrictions on the relevant account.

[ Amazon Brazil launched the "Indique e Ganhe" program, sellers can enjoy cash rewards for referrals ] Amazon Brazil has recently announced the launch of the “Indique e Ganhe” program, which offers sellers compensation for referrals and attracts more new buyers to its platform. According to reports, Amazon will launch the "Indique e Ganhe" program in June. Through this program, seller referrals can be paid up to R$200. At the same time, new sellers who are recommended by sellers and successfully sell on Amazon can get a reward of up to 100 reais.

Last Morning Post: At the expense of profits, Target took aggressive measures to clear inventory; the U.S. trade deficit fell sharply by 19.1% in April｜Cross-border E-commerce Daily

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