Entering the second quarter of 2025, Taiwanese PCB manufacturers have exhibited optimism on market recovery, propelled by persistent demand from high-end applications, including AI servers and satellite communications, as well as the expedited adoption of edge AI devices. This trend is expected to enhance order visibility for high-layer count, high-speed, and high-frequency PCBs, according to industry sources.
Nevertheless, the market demand has rebounded at a relatively slow pace as the impending peak season for consumer electronics has not yet arrived. PCB manufacturers believe that a significant rise in orders may not materialize until the end of the second quarter.
Automotive electrification drives gradual recovery
The automotive industry is exhibiting indicators of a gradual increase in customer demand, driven by the trend toward electrification. However, the global automotive industry's enduring uncertainty suggests that substantial improvements will only happen in the latter half of 2025, according to sources.
AI server demand remains strong
Supply chain sources indicate that the AI server market has determined that the first quarter of 2025 will not be a conventional off-peak phase, anticipating robust demand growth in the second quarter. Industry participants, including server PCB specialist Gold Circuit Electronics (GCE) and CCL companies Elite Material, Taiwan Union Technology (TUC), and Iteq are expected to continue benefiting from this trend.
Market segmentation emerges among cloud providers
Additionally, the market is gradually dividing into two camps as the four main cloud service providers (CSP) enter the competition. The first camp contains Nvidia's GB200 and GB300 AI servers, which are approaching mass production, increasing the amount of 800G switches and board layer counts. The second group comprises companies supporting ASIC chips, such as Amazon Web Services, Google, and Meta Platforms, which are increasing capital expenditures and actively investing in related research and development.
According to industry insiders, GCE has joined the supply chains of the four major CSP customers, resulting in a significant rise in orders from two of them. Currently, server-related revenue makes up almost 70% of the PCB firm's entire sales. With market demand constantly increasing and product specifications evolving, GCE's manufacturing capabilities in Taiwan and China have reached their peak, and newly expanded overseas capacities are set to come online starting in the second quarter of 2025.
Article translated by Jessie Shen and edited by Jerry Chen
