Passive Components in Huaqiangbei — Prices Shift Daily!

MLCC has taken center stage in this round of price hikes.

If there is one product standing out the most in this round of price hikes, it must be MLCC. Many standard‑capacitance part numbers in packages 0402, 0603, 0805 and 1206 have undergone multiple consecutive price adjustments. Automotive‑grade, high‑capacitance and high‑voltage‑withstanding components have posted even more substantial price increases.

Many distributors report that a large number of manufacturers have cancelled long‑term quotations. Previously, quotations were valid for three to five days, while most quotes now are only valid on the day of issuance.

The pace of price increases accelerated sharply starting in May this year. By June and July, the whole market fell into a panic‑buying spree.

Murata 1206‑476 (47μF, server‑spec part) was priced at approximately CNY 300 per 2000 pieces in May. By early July, its price surged to CNY 700‑755 per 2000 pieces, more than doubling, with a single‑day price rise of up to 5%.

More notably, certain scarce high‑capacitance and high‑voltage part numbers have seen their prices soar 3‑5‑fold since the beginning of the year, and a handful of part numbers have rocketed over 10‑fold.

One stall operator stated that a component which once cost just over CNY 0.01 per piece now costs more than CNY 0.10, representing a ten‑fold jump. Another customer agreed on a price of CNY 0.36 per unit, yet the price rose by CNY 0.20 when the customer came to collect the goods just one hour later, marking a price increase of over 50%.

It is not only high‑end, high‑capacitance MLCCs that are getting more expensive; MLCCs for mid‑to‑low‑end consumer electronics have also followed the upward trend.

Standard components such as 0402 and 0603 have seen a cumulative price increase of 200%‑300%. The price of 0402‑104K has climbed from CNY 0.0026 per piece to CNY 0.012‑0.02 per piece.

At present, many high‑capacitance MLCCs from major brands including Murata, Samsung and Taiyo Yuden are out‑of‑stock at Huaqiangbei stalls. Supplies are either rationed and reserved exclusively for long‑term key clients, leaving regular buyers unable to obtain bulk quantities.

Major Manufacturers Raise Prices One After Another

This round of price hikes is not an action taken by a single manufacturer, but a collective move among the world’s leading suppliers.

Murata has unquestionably taken the lead. It implemented two rounds of price increases in March and April, ranging from 15% to 35%. A third‑round price‑increase notice was issued on July 1st, targeting AI‑server and high‑end automotive‑grade products with a 10%‑40% markup.

Samsung Electro‑Mechanics followed closely behind. It raised prices for consumer‑electronic and high‑capacitance MLCCs back in June, with high‑capacitance, high‑frequency parts rising by 50%‑80%.

Taiyo Yuden increased prices by 6%‑13% for consumer‑grade low‑capacitance and automotive MLCCs in the China market as early as May, and later followed suit with its high‑end components.

TDK and Kyocera have also taken action. They have simultaneously cut production capacity for mid‑to‑low‑end products and given priority to orders for computing‑power‑related and new‑energy‑vehicle applications, which has naturally pushed prices upward.

Taiwan‑based manufacturers quickly followed suit. Yageo and Walsin‑Tek hold a considerable market share in the mid‑to‑high‑end general‑purpose segment. Adjusting their prices in line with Japanese and Korean suppliers, they have raised prices of high‑end components by over 30%, while mid‑to‑low‑end products have seen around a 20% increase.

Domestic Chinese manufacturers including Fenghua Advanced Technology, Sanhuan Group and Torch Electron have also implemented widespread price hikes of 5%‑10%. Prices for high‑specification parts have even risen to levels comparable to imported brands.

Currently, lead‑times from original manufacturers keep getting longer. The lead‑time for high‑end, high‑capacitance MLCCs has been extended sharply from the previous 3‑6 weeks to 4‑6 months. The order fulfilment rate stands at only 10%‑20%. For certain part numbers, manufacturers are simply restricting order acceptance or enforcing bundled shipments.

Consumer electronics haven't seen a boom, so why have passive components risen in price first?

Many people are puzzled. There has been no full‑scale boom in consumer electronics, so why have passive‑component prices risen first? In fact, this price surge stems not from a single cause, but a combination of multiple factors.

Topping the list is the AI server sector. A standard server already consumes a large quantity of MLCCs. With the sharp surge in power density of AI servers, the consumption of high‑capacitance MLCCs per unit has multiplied several times, even growing by ten‑fold compared with ordinary servers.

Major enterprises such as NVIDIA, Amazon and Meta have seen explosive growth in their AI‑server orders this year. Global demand for MLCCs used in AI servers will reach 2 trillion pieces this year, and the figure is projected to rise to 5‑6 trillion pieces in the future.

Worldwide, only a handful of suppliers, mainly Murata and Samsung, are capable of manufacturing high‑end, high‑capacitance MLCCs. Their production capacity is inherently limited with relatively low yield rates. Most of their capacity has been occupied by AI‑computing‑power orders, leaving very few components available for the consumer‑electronics market.

Next comes new‑energy vehicles. The MLCC consumption of a new‑energy vehicle has doubled compared with that of a fuel‑powered car. Rising demand for high‑voltage, high‑capacitance and automotive‑grade components has diverted another portion of high‑end production capacity. Meanwhile, upstream raw‑material costs, including ceramic dielectrics, silver paste and nickel powder, have also climbed, further driving up component prices from the cost side.

In addition, markets such as industrial automation, robotics, energy‑storage systems and power‑supply equipment keep consuming large volumes of passive components. These sectors jointly form a new pillar of market demand.

Will Prices Keep Rising in the Period Ahead?

This is the question that concerns the market most at present.

From the current perspective, the likelihood of a sharp price drop in the short term is low.

The reason is straightforward.

Demand from sectors including AI, automotive electronics, energy storage and power‑supply equipment continues to grow, while new production capacity for high‑end MLCCs cannot be ramped up rapidly within a short period.

At the same time, some original‑equipment manufacturers are still committed to inventory control and product‑mix optimization, and no longer compete for market share by offering low prices as they did in the past.

In other words, the market is more likely to enter a new phase:

prices of low‑end products will remain relatively stable, whereas high‑end components will stay in tight supply.

For purchasing‑oriented enterprises, competition is no longer only about price, but also about supply‑chain management capabilities.