Cryptic statements from two Chinese defence companies suggest that a long-distance shooting record may have been broken yet again.

The first hint came on April 28, when Chongqing Changjiang Electric Appliances Industries Group, one of China’s biggest ammunition manufacturers, announced that an unspecified product had “successfully refreshed the world record for similar products” during a “specialised test”.

The next day, Hunan Huanan OptoElectronic Group – a military optics supplier – said in a brief statement that its product had been used in a “sniper-specific test” and had “again supported the system in refreshing a world record in the same field”.

The company praised the optic’s “sharp imaging” and “rock-solid optical axis”, but did not mention any details about the test, the record or which product had been used.

One clue is that last year, Huanan OptoElectronic reported that the domestically developed CS/LR24 rifle was able to hit five out of five targets at a distance of 3,017 metres (9,898 feet). That marked a record for a rifle using 8.6mm rounds, a calibre class long dominated by British and US guns.

This 8.6mm round is equivalent to the Western .338 calibre, which bridges the gap between Nato’s standard 7.62mm round and the larger .50 BMG.