April 27, 2026
Since 2026, the PCB industry has ushered in the most severe price hike cycle in history. Copper Clad Laminates (CCL), copper foil, prepreg (PP), fiberglass cloth, modified resins, and precious metals (gold, silver, copper, tin) have seen rolling price increases. High-end CCL has a clear upward trend throughout the year, fundamentally stemming from the deep resonance of four underlying logics:
AI servers have triggered an explosive demand for high-layer-count, high-frequency, and high-speed PCBs. The CCL value of a single AI server is 3 to 5 times that of a traditional server, directly rewriting the industry's capacity flow. Chasing higher profits, upstream fiberglass cloth and CCL manufacturers have shifted capacity to M7/M8/M9 levels, and even high-frequency/high-speed materials like EM-390 and TU-863+. This has caused a severe contraction in conventional mid-to-low-end materials like FR-4, widening the supply-demand gap.
Data shows that ex-factory prices of high-end electronic cloth have surged over 45% since October 2025. International giants like Mitsubishi Gas Chemical (MGC) and Resonac have completed multiple price adjustments within six months, with M9-grade high-end CCL cumulatively rising over 60%. The industry is experiencing a structural imbalance where the "high-end grabs capacity, while the low-end lacks supply."
Frequent conflicts in the Middle East and the risk of blockades in the Strait of Hormuz have driven up global energy costs. Crude oil price volatility has directly transferred to upstream chemical raw materials, causing epoxy and modified resins to skyrocket by 20%-40%. Simultaneously, the Red Sea shipping crisis has spiked ocean freight rates by over 30%, leading some material suppliers to "quote prices without taking orders," drastically lowering supply chain stability.
Geopolitical conflicts have also exacerbated resource scarcity. Precious metals like copper and silver have surged; copper foil jumped 60%, gold salt doubled, and silver solution skyrocketed by 150%. Raw material costs for high-end PCBs have increased from 50% to over 65%, passing pressure down the chain.
The capacity build-out cycle for high-end PCB materials takes 2-3 years. Current newly added capacity has not been fully released, while AI computing demand is growing exponentially, making the supply-demand gap hard to fill in the short term. Electronic cloth industry inventory has dropped to historic lows, with some board factories forced to "wait for goods" directly at the cloth factories.
Leading Taiwanese CCL manufacturers (such as EMC, Iteq, and TUC) have successively announced price adjustments this year, with average prices expected to rise cumulatively by over 20% in the second quarter of 2026. The industry's lack of capacity elasticity is becoming increasingly prominent.
Global "net-zero emission" and ESG policies are tightening. Strict environmental inspections have led to production limits and halts for small and medium-sized chemical and fiberglass enterprises, further shrinking the supply of high-end electronic-grade resins and fiberglass cloth.
Green transformations are phasing out outdated capacity. Coupled with accelerated industry mergers and acquisitions, the bargaining power of top-tier enterprises has significantly strengthened, forming a "healthy price transmission mechanism." Price hikes have evolved from a short-term pulse into a long-term trend.
Facing cost pressures, PCB board manufacturers must build a comprehensive response system across four dimensions—supply chain optimization, process innovation, product upgrading, and cost transmission—to balance short-term survival with long-term development. Under the "Fabless R&D accelerator" business model, digitalization and flexible supply chains will be the keys to breaking through.
The upward trend in PCB raw material prices is clear for the entirety of 2026, with high-end CCL likely seeing 2-3 price adjustments, accelerating industry reshuffling. Small and medium-sized board factories will face market elimination due to weak bargaining power and low-end capacity. In contrast, top-tier enterprises and innovative service providers equipped with digital integration capabilities will leverage their supply chain advantages and technological barriers to increase their market share.
For Taiwanese PCB manufacturers, the short-term focus must be on supply chain stability and process efficiency enhancement, digesting cost pressures through price locking and cost reduction. In the long term, they must persist in high-end transformation, breaking through technological bottlenecks in high-frequency/high-speed, HDI, and high-layer count boards to build a triple barrier of "Technology + Supply Chain + Digital Customer Service." Only then can they secure their footing amid industry cycle fluctuations. As the localized substitution of high-end materials accelerates and smart manufacturing becomes widespread, the industry will gradually digest the pressure of raw material price hikes. By 2027, the supply gap is expected to ease progressively, and the PCB industry will return to a healthier growth trajectory.
