Recently, the electronic component market has remained red-hot, with the MLCC (Multi-Layer Ceramic Capacitor) segment staging a strong rally and overall industry prosperity surging upward. As an indispensable basic component for electronic circuits, MLCCs have seen simultaneous rises in prices and demand. Driven by structural transformations brought by the rapid expansion of the AI industry, the entire passive component track has attracted widespread market attention.
I. Segment Surges as the Industry Embarks on a Brand-New Transformation
On June 2, the A-share MLCC sector rallied once again with a single-day gain exceeding 9%, pushing share prices of multiple listed industry players sharply higher. Leading enterprises including Fenghua Advanced Technology and Sanhuan Group have doubled their stock prices since May, repeatedly hitting all-time highs. Industry institutional analysis indicates that fueled by dual demand from AI servers and edge AI devices, MLCCs have become one of the core materials for AI servers, second only to GPUs and memory chips in importance, marking a fundamental shift in the industry’s growth logic. As of June 5, domestic A-share players Fenghua Advanced Technology, Jiemei Technology and Sanhuan Group have all doubled their cumulative share price gains for the year. Globally, Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Japan’s world-renowned MLCC giant, has recorded a year-to-date stock price surge of over 200%.
II. Skyrocketing Demand Drives Rising Volume and Value Per Unit
The core catalyst behind the current MLCC boom lies in the comprehensive upgrade of AI computing infrastructure. Compared with traditional servers, AI servers require geometrically higher MLCC usage. Statistics show a regular server only incorporates 1,800 to 2,500 MLCC units, while an 8-GPU AI server needs up to 20,000 pieces. With iterations of next-generation hardware architectures, higher equipment power consumption and more complex power management systems have kept pushing up the number of MLCCs deployed per single unit.
Alongside soaring consumption volume, the total MLCC value per server rack has achieved leaps and bounds. The figure stood at USD 3,000 for early H100 models, jumped to USD 12,000 for GB200 versions, and surpassed USD 22,000 for latest new models, continuously expanding the industry’s value ceiling. Institutions forecast that the MLCC value per single rack is expected to exceed USD 40,000 once mainstream new products enter mass production. Meanwhile, AI servers impose stringent requirements on components including miniaturization, high power density, high temperature resistance and high voltage resistance, leading to persistent tight supply of high-end MLCC products.
III. Global Supply Shortage Spurs Capacity Expansion Among Top Manufacturers
Across the global market, leading manufacturers are fully booked with orders and running at full production capacity, further widening the industry supply-demand gap. Murata, the world’s top MLCC maker from Japan, disclosed that current AI-related MLCC orders have doubled its existing production capacity, with overall capacity utilization maintained at a high level of 90% to 95%. The firm predicts steady price growth for capacitors this year, and its server-related revenue is set to surge 85% to 90% year-on-year. To meet demand, it has invested JPY 800 billion to expand high-end production lines.
South Korea’s Samsung Electro-Mechanics has also witnessed robust business growth, with its component segment revenue rising both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter in Q1. Strong demand for high-end products such as AI server and automotive components means tight market supply will persist in the short term.
IV. Restructured Industry Logic: The Cyclical Track Transforms into a Growth Sector
Looking back on industrial development, memory chips have already ridden the AI wave to evolve from a traditional cyclical track into a high-growth growth sector. The MLCC industry now faces identical opportunities, with widespread market discussions on whether it can replicate the growth trajectory of the memory sector. Industry analysts point out that the current MLCC price hike is not merely driven by inventory cycles; instead, priority allocation of high-end production capacity has triggered supply-demand imbalance across the whole industry, a logic highly analogous to HBM occupying capacity originally for general memory chips.
Unlike previous industry cycles triggered by capacity shifts or external factors, this upward cycle is dominated by structural AI-driven demand. The industry landscape is gradually polarizing: high-end products face acute shortages while mid-to-low-end products remain balanced in supply and demand. High-spec components for AI servers and automotive applications will stay in long-term undersupply, with industrial profits continuously concentrating in high-end segments. This creates a prime window for development for domestic local manufacturers.
V. Emerging Opportunities Empower Domestic Manufacturers to Accelerate Breakthroughs
Aggressive expansion of high-end product lines by overseas giants has indirectly vacated market space for mid-to-low-end segments. Coupled with the overall upward price trend across the industry, domestic electronic component enterprises are presented with dual opportunities to lift market share and profitability. Leading domestic players are seizing the moment to speed up R&D of high-end products, expand production lines and onboard new clients, striving to break through into the high-end market.
As a local enterprise deeply rooted in passive components, FOSAN consistently follows industrial trends centered on technological R&D and capacity construction. Supported by four intelligent manufacturing bases, the company steadily pushes forward its capacity expansion plan with a stable annual expansion rate of 15% to 30%. It targets an annual output of 35 billion units in 2026, with a long-term roadmap to exceed 100 billion units by 2030.
In terms of product layout, FOSAN focuses on electronic components including alloy resistors, anti-sulfur resistors, automotive-grade resistors and high-power resistors. We continuously optimize production processes and upgrade intelligent production lines to develop a series of highly reliable and stable products fully compatible with high-end application scenarios such as AI servers, new energy vehicles, automotive electronics and industrial automation.
AI is reshaping the entire electronic industrial ecosystem and unlocking sustained growth potential for the passive component track. Going forward, FOSAN will keep taking technological innovation as its core driver and large-scale intelligent manufacturing as solid backing. We will seize industrial development opportunities, continuously polish product quality, cooperate with all partners to share a prosperous new industrial future, and accelerate the rise of China’s domestic electronic component industry.