Benefiting from the continued expansion of demand related to AI infrastructure such as AI servers, high-speed network communications and memory, Taiwan PCB manufacturers have experienced strong growth in operations. (Reuters)
[Reporter Zhuo Yijun/Taipei Report] Benefiting from the continued expansion of demand related to AI infrastructure such as AI servers, high-speed network communications and memories, it has driven the growth of demand for high-end products such as carrier boards, HLC and HDI. On the other hand, due to the continued tight supply of high-end materials and rising raw material costs, PCB product prices have increased quarter by quarter. According to a survey by TPCA (Taiwan Circuit Board Association), in 2026 Taiwan's PCB manufacturing showed strong growth momentum in the second quarter of this year, with domestic and overseas output value reaching 279.1 billion yuan, an increase of 27.9% over the same period in 2025. The cumulative domestic and overseas output value in the first half of 2026 reached 524.7 billion yuan, an annual increase of 23.9%. The overall development trend in 2026 is significantly better than the past two years. The total domestic and overseas output value for the whole year is expected to exceed 1 trillion yuan for the first time, reaching 1.1365 billion yuan, an annual increase of 24.2%.
From the perspective of product categories, most PCB categories will show an annual growth trend in the second quarter of 2026, among which AI-related products have the most significant growth. The annual growth rate of carrier boards reached 36.7%. Benefited from the continued growth in demand for AI servers, HPC and high-speed network chips, coupled with tight supply, the price of carrier boards has increased, driving output value to continue to grow.
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HDI benefited from the growth in demand for AI servers, low-orbit satellites and automotive electronics, supporting the shipment of high-end HDI products; however, market demand for mobile phones and personal computers remained weak, offsetting some of the growth momentum, with an annual growth rate of 28.4%. As the demand for multi-layer boards continues to grow in AI servers, high-end network communications and memory modules, the proportion of high-level, high-frequency and high-speed PCB products has increased, driving the output value of multi-layer boards to grow significantly, with an annual growth rate of 47.6%. The annual growth rate of FPC is 1.3%. Affected by the weak demand for mobile phones and laptops, the overall FPC market performance is flat; however, AI smart glasses have begun to be shipped in large quantities, which will help support the demand for FPC and Rigid-Flex boards.
In terms of related applications, the global automotive market is gradually recovering, and some car manufacturers are reorganizing their layout of fuel vehicles and hybrid vehicles, driving demand for related orders. Another highlight is that the demand for AI smart glasses is gradually increasing, becoming an emerging application market worthy of attention in addition to AI infrastructure.
With the expansion of AI applications and the gradual rise of emerging applications such as AI glasses and satellite communications, the total domestic and overseas output value of PCB is expected to increase by 24.5% annually in the second half of 2026, reaching 611.8 billion yuan, and the total annual output value is expected to reach 1.1365 billion yuan, an annual increase of 24.2%. Looking forward to the second half of 2026, the industry still needs to deal with four uncertainties prudently: including the suppression of terminal demand by rising component costs, continued tightness of key PCB materials, the impact of geopolitics on the economic and trade environment, and potential risks brought about by AI infrastructure investment returns and supply and demand fluctuations, which may still affect momentum in the second half of the year. Despite this, investment in AI infrastructure will continue to expand, and the price effect driven by the continued tight supply of high-end materials is expected to continue the growth pattern of both price and volume. Overall, Taiwan's PCB industry will continue to see growth in both price and volume.
In the first half of 2026, Taiwan's PCB materials domestic and overseas output value reached 271.6 billion yuan, an annual increase of 38.6%. Growth mainly comes from high-frequency and high-speed CCL in hard board materials. In addition, key materials such as fiberglass cloth and copper foil continue to be in short supply. Affected by tight production capacity and rising raw material costs, material prices have gradually increased, further pushing up the overall PCB materials industry output value. Taiwan’s PCB equipment domestic and overseas output value was 46.08 billion yuan, an annual increase of 27.8%. Among them, mechanical drilling equipment and drill bits have the most prominent growth. Overall, Taiwan's PCB industry chain will benefit from the rapid expansion of demand for AI servers and high-speed network communications in 2026, driving demand and development of the overall industry chain.
Since the second half of 2025, the demand for AI servers and high-speed network communications has grown rapidly, driving the supply and demand of PCBs, carrier boards and key materials to become tight. After entering 2026, not only has the shortage situation not improved significantly, but the scope of impact has gradually expanded from high-end materials such as Low CTE, Low Dk2 and HVLP4 to CCL, high-end PCB, ABF carrier boards, process equipment and consumables. Some mid- to low-end materials and general CCL material numbers have also begun to experience extended delivery times or price increases. As of the second quarter of 2026, the supply of high-end materials, PCBs, carrier boards and specific process equipment will still remain tight. PCB factories, carrier board factories, material manufacturers and equipment manufacturers have all actively expanded production, and some of the new production capacity will be opened from 2027 to 2029. However, as AI demand growth, specification upgrades, and customer certification and yield improvements all take time, new supply will still be difficult to fully fill the gap in the short term. It is expected that the tight supply chain will continue until at least 2027.
The output value of the PCB industry is expected to reach a new high in 2026. The rapid expansion of demand for AI infrastructure has caused this wave of growth to spread from the PCB manufacturing end all the way to upstream materials and equipment. AI brings not only a business cycle of rising demand, but also changing the original value distribution of the PCB supply chain. As technology changes, the competitive position of existing suppliers may change, creating opportunities for new players to enter the supply chain. Whether Taiwan's PCB supply chain can keep up with each generation of AI platform upgrades and transform technological changes into new product value will be the key to whether Taiwan's PCB supply chain can continue to expand its competitive advantage.
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