Korea CCL Import Prices Break $20,000/Ton Barrier for First Time

May 10, 2026 — The copper clad laminate (CCL) market is experiencing its most severe supply crunch in decades, with South Korea's import prices reaching an unprecedented $20,728 per ton in March 2026—a 74.5% surge from $11,880 a year earlier, according to Korea Customs Service data reported by Hankyung. This marks the first time CCL import prices have exceeded $20,000 per ton since records began in 2000.

The severity of the shortage is illustrated by procurement behavior: one Seoul-based PCB maker reportedly placed advance orders worth KRW 10 billion (approximately $7.2 million) with Taiwan's EMC and TUC—more than five times its typical monthly usage—to secure supply amid tightening conditions.

What's Driving the CCL Shortage

The fundamental driver is a structural shift toward higher-value, AI-optimized materials. PCBs for advanced GPUs, AI accelerators, and high-speed networking switches require premium CCL grades manufactured with T-glass fiber cloth—a specialized material with lower dielectric loss and superior high-frequency performance compared to standard E-glass.

According to TrendForce, glass fiber cloth, copper foil, and resin account for roughly 19%, 42%, and 26% of total CCL costs, respectively. The imminent arrival of the NVIDIA Rubin GPU is further reshaping demand: Rubin-based substrates feature significantly larger area and higher layer counts than their predecessors. The Rubin LPX rack—a disaggregated inference system—is expected to amplify consumption of high-end glass fiber cloth even further.

Fourth Round of Price Increases in 2026

The wave of price hikes shows no signs of abating. China's leading CCL manufacturer Kingboard issued its fourth price increase of 2026 on April 28, raising FR-4 CCL and prepreg prices by an additional 10%, as reported by Economic Daily News.

Japanese semiconductor materials giants are also passing through costs aggressively:

• Resonac raised prices by over 30% across CCL, bonding sheets, and copper foil resin sheets
• Mitsubishi Gas Chemical increased all product series by up to 30%, effective April 1
• Taiwan's Iteq Corporation raised high-end CCL prices by 20-40% effective April 25, specifically targeting AI server and networking applications

Capacity Expansion Race Accelerates

Against this backdrop, CCL suppliers are investing heavily in new capacity:

• EMC and TUC (Taiwan) are actively ramping output, with equipment order visibility already extending to 2028, according to Liberty Times
• Doosan Corporation (South Korea) plans to build a new CCL production facility in Thailand, investing 180 billion won ($121.7 million), with mass production targeted for H2 2028, as reported by The Korea Herald

Impact on PCB Buyers and Hardware Engineers

For hardware engineers and procurement teams, the CCL tightness means:

1. Lead time planning: Standard PCB lead times are extending 1-3 weeks as fabricators work through material allocation constraints
2. Cost budgeting: Expect 15-25% higher PCB pricing compared to H2 2025, with high-layer-count and high-frequency boards seeing the steepest increases
3. Material specification: Designs specifying premium laminates (Megtron 6/7, TU-872) face the tightest supply. Consider whether standard-grade materials can meet your Dk/Df requirements before defaulting to premium specs
4. Strategic sourcing: Fabricators with strong supplier relationships and diversified CCL sourcing have a significant advantage in the current market

The T-Glass Factor: Why Not All CCL Shortages Are Equal

Understanding the current market requires distinguishing between standard CCL and the premium grades driving the tightest constraints. Traditional PCBs use E-glass fiber cloth in their CCL construction—this material is widely available and, while prices have risen, supply remains manageable.

The acute shortage centers on T-glass (also called NE-glass or low-Dk glass). T-glass has a dielectric constant of approximately 4.4 (versus 6.2 for E-glass), making it essential for high-frequency applications like AI GPU substrates, high-speed networking switches, and 5G infrastructure. Manufacturing T-glass requires specialized furnaces operating at higher temperatures with tighter composition control, and only a handful of global suppliers have this capability.

With NVIDIA's Rubin architecture demanding larger substrates with more layers—and every major hyperscaler ramping AI infrastructure simultaneously—T-glass production capacity has become the bottleneck that ripples through the entire CCL supply chain. Even standard-grade CCL buyers are affected, as production lines allocating more capacity to premium grades reduce availability across all product tiers.

Historical Context: How We Got Here

The current CCL crisis didn't emerge overnight. Several structural factors converged:

• 2024-2025: AI server demand triggered the first wave of CCL price increases, initially focused on high-end grades. Standard FR-4 CCL remained stable
• Early 2026: The SABIC PPE resin production disruption (detailed in our earlier coverage of the resin shortage) removed a critical resin source from the market
• Q1 2026: Copper prices surged above $13,000/tonne, pushing copper foil costs up 30%+. Combined with glass cloth tightness, CCL manufacturers had no choice but to pass through costs
• April-May 2026: The cumulative effect of simultaneous raw material price increases, geopolitical disruptions, and surging AI demand created the current seller's market

What Hardware Teams Should Do Now

For hardware engineering and procurement teams navigating this environment:

1. Forecast early: Share your 6-12 month production forecasts with your PCB supplier so they can secure material allocation
2. Review material specs: Work with your fabricator to determine whether your design truly requires premium CCL grades. Many designs over-specify materials—our controlled impedance guide explains how to evaluate whether standard-grade laminates meet your Dk/Df requirements
3. Consider dual-sourcing: Designs qualified on a single laminate brand are vulnerable. Qualify a second-source material now while volumes are manageable
4. Lock pricing: For production programs, negotiate fixed-price agreements with your fabricator covering 2-3 quarters. The cost may be slightly higher than spot pricing today, but it protects against further escalation

At AtlasPCB, we maintain direct procurement relationships with multiple CCL suppliers across Taiwan, Japan, and China, enabling us to buffer customers from the worst of the supply volatility. Our engineering team provides material optimization reviews as part of every project—identifying where premium materials are truly needed and where standard alternatives can deliver equivalent performance at lower cost and better availability.

For projects in the pipeline, we recommend locking in material allocations early. Contact our engineering team to discuss lead times and material availability for your specific requirements.

Originally published on AtlasPCB Engineering Blog. AtlasPCB specializes in HDI, RF, and high-layer-count PCB manufacturing for international hardware teams.