Raw Material Price Hikes and Technological Upgrades Resonate: PC Sheet Industry Enters a New Cycle of High-Quality Development

In the first week of April 2026, the polycarbonate (PC) sheet industry reached a critical turning point. On April 1, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, a global chemical giant, announced a 30% price increase across all core materials including high-end copper-clad laminates and prepregs, marking its third price adjustment within six months with a cumulative rise of over 60%. Leading domestic electronic cloth manufacturers such as China Jushi and Henan Guangyuan New Materials followed suit, raising the price of 7628-type electronic cloth to 6.5 yuan per meter, representing a nearly 10% monthly increase. This round of price hikes is not a short-term fluctuation, but a significant signal of the restructuring of the industry's supply and demand pattern driven by multiple factors including the boom in AI computing power and the promotion of green buildings, injecting new momentum into the high-quality development of the PC sheet industry.

From the perspective of the current industry situation, this round of price surges features full industrial chain transmission. Rising prices of upstream raw materials such as bisphenol A and phosgene have driven up production costs of PC sheets. On the manufacturing side, leading enterprises have enhanced product added value through technological upgrades including co-extrusion, nano-coating, and flame-retardant modification, with prices of some high-end sheets rising by 10%–15% accordingly. Downstream sectors such as architectural daylighting, new energy vehicles, and building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) show strong demand and high acceptance of price increases, enabling smooth cost transmission. Data shows that in the first quarter of 2026, the global PCB market size for AI servers surged by 100%–200% year-on-year, with the PCB value of a single AI server being 5–8 times that of an ordinary server, directly boosting demand for high-end PC sheets.

Regarding industry development trends, greenization, high-end orientation, and domestic substitution have become core directions. Guided by the "dual carbon" goals, the PC sheet industry is accelerating its transition to low-carbon development. It is expected that over 60% of large-scale enterprises will establish a complete carbon footprint management system in 2026, and products of leading players will reach international advanced levels in carbon footprint. Bio-based PC sheets and closed-loop chemical recycling technologies are gradually gaining popularity, reducing production energy consumption while breaking through green trade barriers. Technologically, demand for functional sheets featuring high weather resistance, scratch resistance, and intelligent responsiveness is surging, expanding application scenarios from traditional construction to new energy, electronic appliances, modern agriculture and other fields.

In terms of market structure, industry concentration continues to rise, with the top 10 enterprises' market share (CR10) projected to climb from 42% in 2023 to over 75% by 2030. Relying on cost advantages, technological accumulation, and localized services, domestic enterprises are expanding their share in the mid-to-high end market, breaking the monopoly of foreign giants. Meanwhile, leading players are accelerating capacity expansion, focusing on high-end production capacity construction, and driving the industry to shift from "scale expansion" to "quality improvement".

In the short term, raw material price increases will accelerate industry reshuffle, putting small and medium-sized enterprises lacking technological advantages and cost control capabilities at risk of elimination. In the long run, technological innovation and green development will become the core competitiveness of enterprises. With the continuous boom in AI computing power, the deepening of green building policies, and the expansion of new energy infrastructure, the PC sheet industry is expected to embrace a high-prosperity cycle of 1–2 years. Going forward, enterprises need to increase R&D investment, deploy low-carbon technologies and high-end products, and strengthen industrial chain coordination to seize opportunities in industry transformation and achieve sustainable development.