Category: Flash News

On April 30th, the two-day BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting concluded in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on the afternoon of April 29th. The BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting issued a presidential statement reaffirming the commitment to strengthening the strategic partnership framework among BRICS countries and carrying out cooperation under the three pillars of policy security, economy and finance, and people to people exchanges. The foreign ministers of various countries reiterated their commitment to upholding the BRICS spirit of mutual respect, mutual understanding, equal treatment, solidarity and mutual assistance, openness and inclusiveness, and consensus building, strengthening global cooperation in the South, and achieving more inclusive and sustainable governance. The statement welcomes Indonesia to become a member of BRICS, and welcomes Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Nigeria, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, and Uzbekistan to become BRICS partner countries from January 1, 2025. The statement reaffirms the firm commitment to multilateralism and international law, including the purposes and principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter. The ministers of various countries condemned unilateral actions, including intentional withholding of assessed contributions, that undermine the work of global multilateral institutions and hinder their performance of their respective responsibilities. The statement stated that all countries are aware of the current global polarization and mistrust situation, and encourage global action to strengthen international peace and security. The statement emphasizes the indivisibility of national security and reaffirms the commitment to peacefully resolving international disputes through dialogue, consultation, and diplomatic means. Foreign ministers of various countries advocate adopting a multilateral approach, respecting the views and positions of all countries on major global issues such as sustainable development, eradicating hunger and poverty, and fully addressing the challenges of climate change. They express serious concern over the rise of unreasonable unilateral protectionist measures that do not comply with WTO rules, including indiscriminately increasing reciprocal tariffs and non-tariff measures. Foreign ministers of various countries support comprehensive reform of the United Nations, including its Security Council, to make it more democratic, representative, effective, and efficient, and to increase the representation of developing countries in the Security Council, enabling it to effectively address current global challenges. In addition, the foreign ministers of the participating countries expressed serious concern over the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa region. During the meeting, representatives from various countries also elaborated on their respective national positions on the conflict in Ukraine expressed in relevant forums such as the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations General Assembly. We look forward to the establishment of the “African Peace Initiative” and the “Friends of Peace Group” to peacefully resolve conflicts through official dialogue and diplomatic means. The foreign ministers of various countries strongly condemn any acts of terrorism, reaffirm their commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, urge to ensure zero tolerance for terrorism, and refuse to adopt double standards in counter-terrorism issues. The statement concludes by stating that all parties will fully support Brazil’s assumption of the presidency of BRICS in 2025, with the theme of “Strengthening Global Southern Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance” for this year. The meeting also confirmed that the next BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting will be held during the 80th United Nations General Assembly, and will be hosted by India, the incoming chair of BRICS in 2026.

On April 30th, popular Chinese concept stocks fluctuated, with the Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index falling 0.3%. Xiaopeng Motors fell more than 6%, Luckin Coffee fell more than 3%, Beike, NIO, Baidu and others fell more than 1%, while TAL Education, Ideal Auto, Miniso and others fell slightly; New Oriental rose more than 4%, Futu Holdings and Bawang Tea Ji rose more than 2%, Bilibili, Kingsoft Cloud, Ctrip rose more than 1%, and JD.com, Vipshop, Tencent Music and others rose slightly.

On April 30th, with the implementation of the Trump administration’s “cut and consolidate” plan, the number of small business contractors receiving work cancellation notices this year has surged to a record level. Since Trump was sworn in as the President of the United States on January 20th, over 1800 small business contractors have received “convenient termination” notices from private organizations, exceeding the average level of previous years. On April 30th, Trump’s second term had already exceeded 100 days.

On April 30th, Canadian Prime Minister Carney stated on April 29th local time that Canada deserves respect from the United States and will only engage in trade and security negotiations with US President Trump “on our terms”. Carney stated that he will only visit Washington if there is a need for “serious discussions” and respect for Canadian sovereignty.

On April 29th, as of April 28th, 32 securities firms or listed entities have disclosed their first quarter performance, with a median year-on-year growth rate of about 57%, of which 28 are growing positively, accounting for 87.5%. The three major businesses of brokerage, self operated, and credit constitute the “three pillars” of performance growth. Based on data from 21 comparable securities firms, the brokerage business revenue increased by 46.86% year-on-year in the first quarter, the investment banking business net revenue increased by 6.25% year-on-year, the asset management business net revenue decreased by 2.48% year-on-year, the self operated business revenue increased by 37.94% year-on-year, the interest net revenue increased by 43.55% year-on-year, and other business revenue decreased by 24.61% year-on-year. (Caixin reporter Gao Yanyun)

On April 29th, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Bagai stated at a regular press conference on the 28th local time that retaining uranium enrichment technology is Iran’s “red line” in the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear issue. Bagae stated that according to Oman’s arrangement, the next round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States is scheduled for May 3rd, and the three parties will jointly determine the specific time and location of the negotiations. He emphasized that lifting US sanctions is in the best interest of the Iranian people, and Iran will not impose any restrictions on achieving this goal. However, at the same time, Iran has also set its own “red line”.

On April 29th, according to a research report by CITIC Securities, the traditional electronic fabric market will experience price recovery from 2024 to 2025. In Q1 of 2025, multiple companies successfully raised prices, and the price of electronic yarn increased by over 17% year-on-year. This is due to the improvement of market supply and demand structure and limited changes in production capacity. At the same time, the demand for AI servers and high-frequency communication is driving the supply shortage of Low Dk electronic yarn. The global market size of 5G low dielectric electronic yarn and electronic fabric is expected to reach approximately $135 million in 2023, and is expected to reach $528 million by 2030, with a compound annual growth rate of 21.4%. At present, Japanese and Taiwanese companies occupy a large share of the low dielectric electronic fabric market, but domestic companies will vigorously expand production from Q4 2024. It is expected that after the new domestic production capacity is put into operation in the second half of 2025, the market share will be expanded and performance will be realized.

On April 29th, Huatai Securities pointed out that commercial real estate will face challenges in 2024, but top enterprises will outperform the industry in terms of scale expansion and operational efficiency. I am optimistic about the investment opportunities in the commercial real estate sector in 2025, mainly based on the following reasons: 1) Under the catalysis of policies, the consumer market is expected to continue to recover, giving commercial real estate a more solid terminal market soil; 2) Consumer REITs drive operators to achieve asset monetization, liquidity and management premium, and light asset operation space extension; 3) The relative management advantages of top operators continue to improve, strengthening the alpha attribute and continuing to demonstrate the logic of increasing concentration; 4) The valuation advantage is highlighted, and the valuation of the property holding sector is basically equivalent to the market value. The market value of some heavy asset operators’ business development sectors is already lower than the reasonable valuation of the property holding sector, further strengthening the investment value of the enterprise.

On April 29th, Guangfa Securities’ research report stated that the demand for coal industry in April was still in the off-season, and coal prices were generally weak. However, the expectation of increasing efforts to stabilize growth and counter cyclical adjustment policies in the later stage has begun to strengthen. With the recovery of industrial demand, the slowdown in production growth and the decline in imported coal expectations, it is expected that coal prices will gradually rise after inventory falls. In terms of the company, there may be a downward trend in coal prices in 2025. Considering that the long-term contract prices of leading companies are relatively stable and cost expenses are generally well controlled, it is expected that profits will remain overall stable.

① 14:00 German May Gfk Consumer Confidence Index; ② 17:00 Eurozone April Industrial Prosperity Index and April Economic Prosperity Index; ③ At 20:00, US Treasury Secretary Bessent attended the press conference; ④ At 20:30, US Treasury Secretary Besson delivered a speech; ⑤ 21:00 Monthly FHFA House Price Index and Annual S&P/CS20 Unseasonally Adjusted House Price Index for February in the United States; ⑥ 22:00 JOLTs job vacancies in the United States for March and Consumer Confidence Index of the Consultative Conference for April; ⑦ The next day at 04:30, API crude oil inventory for the week of April 25th in the United States.