Future price trend of CCL:

1. In the second half of 2026: The overall price will remain on the rise, and some categories may experience shortages.

2. In the first half of 2027: There will still be an increase, but the amplitude will be smaller. In the second half: The price will stabilize slightly.

3. From 2028 and beyond: Supply and demand will be balanced, and the price will enter a stable cycle.

 Four core reasons for the continuous increase in copper clad laminate (CCL) prices (2025–2026 cycle)

1. The upstream three major raw materials are all in short supply and costs are rising rigidly (the most direct driving force)

Cost composition of copper clad laminate: copper foil 35%–40%, glass fiber cloth 20%–25%, epoxy resin 15%–20%. The simultaneous price increase of all three factors combined has forced CCL factories to pass on costs passively.

a. Electronic glass fiber cloth (7628/2116/1080): The monthly industry shortage is 40 million meters, and the annual shortage is 4–500 million meters. A-level spot goods are almost out of stock; the ultra-thin cloth production capacity is locked by AI orders, the regular E cloth supply is squeezed, and the more basic specifications are even more in short supply. The glass fiber kiln furnace expansion cycle is 2–3 years, and the new capacity added in 2026 can only slightly alleviate the shortage and cannot fill the gap.

B. Copper foil: The LME copper price is in a high-oscillation state; the gap for AI server-specific HVLP4/5 high-end copper foil is over 50%, the processing fee has doubled year-on-year, and the delivery period is 3–6 months; lithium battery copper foil and electronic copper foil share production lines, and the production capacity is continuously diverted, and the ordinary standard copper foil also experiences price increases simultaneously.

C. Epoxy resin: The war in the Middle East has pushed up the monomer price, and it is now somewhat stable, but even if the war ends, the price cannot be lowered for a while. The supply chain is disrupted and it will take a certain amount of time to restore.

2. The explosive demand for AI computing power has formed a structural supply-demand gap (the core driver of the demand side)

Ordinary server PCBs are only 8–16 layers, and the usage of CCL per unit is low; AI server GB200/Rubin series PCBs have 20–78 layers, and the usage of CCL per unit is 5–8 times that of traditional servers and is more than 5 times in value.

3. The expansion cycle of the entire industry chain is extremely long, and supply cannot keep up with demand in the short term.

Glass fiber cloth kiln furnace: ignition → ramp-up and stabilization for 2–3 years;

In simple terms: The demand doubles in one year, but the supply takes 2–3 years to expand, and the supply-demand gap continues to widen.

4. The continuous growth of automotive electronics and communication, combined with low inventory and the rush to stock up

The PCB area per vehicle of new energy vehicles is three times that of fuel vehicles, 800V high voltage, and vehicle Ethernet drive have pulled the automotive-grade CCL to stable growth.