Largan Precision, a leading optical lens manufacturer, held its earnings call on January 8 to announce its fourth-quarter 2025 and full-year 2025 financial results. Benefiting from new product pull-ins by customers, the company posted consolidated full-year 2025 revenue of NT$61.15 billion (US$1.94 billion), up 3% year over year and surpassing the previous record of NT$60.75 billion set in 2019. However, gross margin in the fourth quarter of 2025 unexpectedly fell below 50%, slipping to 47.8%.

Taiwan's passive component industry is experiencing another round of price increases. Joyin, a circuit protection components brand under Walsin Technology, has issued price increase notices to customers, announcing increases of 20-25% for varistors and 15-20% for negative temperature coefficient (NTC) thermistors. The new prices will take effect for shipments starting January 16, 2026.

China's Ministry of Commerce said on January 7, 2026, that it has launched an anti-dumping investigation into Japanese-origin dichlorosilane (DCS). While framed as a routine trade-remedy case under existing rules, the decision reflects a more specific reality in the semiconductor materials supply chain: China now has domestic fallback capacity in this critical process material, allowing policymakers to act selectively at a sensitive juncture.

CES 2026 is in full swing, where Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced that the next-generation Vera Rubin architecture servers have entered full production, set to succeed the Blackwell series platform.

PentaPro Materials Inc., a Taiwanese supplier of semiconductor process chemicals, has joined the supply chain of TSMC and plans to invest NT$3 billion (US$95 million) in a second manufacturing facility in southern Taiwan as it scales capacity for advanced logic, advanced packaging, and high-performance computing applications.

Japanese electronic components manufacturer TDK Electronics announced that it plans to update its industry-leading silicon anode battery technology later in 2026, coinciding with Apple and other electronics makers launching new devices for the end of year shopping season. TDK has made significant progress in increasing battery capacity while maintaining slim device profiles, and its technology is currently mainly adopted by Chinese smartphone makers.

Transcom is targeting a return to growth in 2026 as defense procurement picks up and demand rises for counter-drone systems and air-defense infrastructure, following a steep revenue decline last year tied to delayed military certifications and shipments.

Looking ahead to 2026, PCB industry leader Zhen Ding Tech. (ZDT) said demand remains solid across high-end applications such as AI servers, optical communications, and IC substrates, with related revenue contributions expected to scale quarter by quarter.

Chunghwa Precision Test Tech (CHPT) said that although revenue in December 2025 and the fourth quarter both declined compared with the same period in 2024, overall full-year performance in 2025 still exceeded the company's original expectations. As AI continues to drive transformation and growth across the semiconductor industry, CHPT is positive that market demand will continue to expand, with 2026 revenue expected to set another new record.

Post-pandemic inventory digestion for mature semiconductor processes has come to an end. Market conditions have rebounded amid tariff-hedging and precautionary stocking, driving Taiwan's leading packaging lead frame supplier, Chang Wah Technology, to see rising demand for high-end products in the second half of 2025. The company has also accelerated capacity expansion plans across Taiwan, China, and Malaysia.

Inpaq Technology, a passive components maker under the Walsin Technology Group, has launched an internal resource realignment plan. Newly appointed CEO and president Pei-Jen Chen stated that the company is emphasizing shortening time to market by integrating sites and centralizing development to build flexible capacity allocation capabilities. Inpaq intends to launch new products every month in 2026.

Taiwan's power semiconductor suppliers are positioning for steady growth through 2026. The momentum comes from two fronts: artificial intelligence data centers adopting new power architectures and automotive customers adjusting sourcing after supply disruptions linked to Nexperia.

Chang Wah Electromaterials and its affiliate Chang Wah Technology are expanding operations across Taiwan, China, and Malaysia as global chipmakers and packaging houses ramp up capacity in Asia, positioning the group's combined distribution and manufacturing model to strengthen its role in the semiconductor back-end supply chain.

The PCB industry is making large upgrades. The largest beneficiaries of the AI boom are IC substrate makers that are part of the advanced chip packaging supply chain, such as Unimicron and Kinsus, which have gradually emerged from the oversupply bottleneck caused by large-scale post-pandemic capacity expansion. The surge in orders has spread to multiple networking and server PCB manufacturers, including Gold Circuit Electronics (CGE), Allied Circuit Co. (ACCL), and First Hi-tec, driving double-digit year-over-year growth in Taiwan's PCB manufacturing output value in 2025.

Yageo, a leading Taiwanese passive components manufacturer, announced a major executive reshuffle, naming current chief financial officer (CFO) Eddie Chen and senior executive vice president Claudio Lollini as co-chief operating officers (COO) effective January 1, 2026, reporting directly to CEO David Wang. Meanwhile, deputy CFO Gavin Zhong will be promoted to CFO.

The South Korean printed circuit board (PCB) industry is struggling as soaring gold and copper prices, up 50% and 30% respectively since early 2025, increase production costs. Despite high factory utilization due to the AI boom in semiconductors, many companies cannot raise product prices, worsening profitability.

In 2025, generative AI investments are reshaping the global semiconductor industry. Nvidia, TSMC, and their supply chains emerge as the biggest winners. But the boom brings new challenges. Rising competition in AI chips threatens a market bubble. Meanwhile, China accelerates its push for self-reliance as US export restrictions tighten. The DIGITIMES news team highlights the year's defining trends.

Amid rising concerns over global copper supply shortages, London Metal Exchange (LME) copper prices have surged nearly 40% since early 2025, significantly increasing cost pressures for industries such as PCB and IC packaging. As the year draws to a close, this sharp rise has forced key players in both China and Taiwan to implement price hikes.

Taiwan's automotive printed circuit board suppliers are facing mounting shipment pressure as global vehicle demand remains weak into early 2025, with consumers and automakers hesitating over the pace of the shift from gasoline-powered cars to electric models, according to industry sources.

ChenFull Precision president CM Lai stated during an earnings call on December 24 that looking ahead to 2026, strong growth momentum in both the semiconductor and defense sectors is expected. For ChenFull, semiconductor business revenue is projected to rise by 20% to 30%, while the defense business is also showing robust potential with opportunities to deliver double-digit growth. Overall gross margin is anticipated to return to around 30%.

As demand for artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors continues to surge, the market for glass substrates, which are widely regarded as a critical material for next-generation advanced packaging, is gaining momentum. South Korean companies such as Samsung Electro-Mechanics (SEMCO) and LG Innotek are gearing up to compete for leadership in this emerging segment.

Electronic component distributor Honey Hope Honesty anticipates significant growth in sales of high-end multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) fueled by rising demand from AI servers and edge AI applications. Despite potential memory shortages affecting the consumer market, the company remains optimistic about 2026 outlook.

FineMat Applied Materials is retooling its business as China's push to localize its display supply chain cuts into demand for the Taiwanese company's core products, prompting new investments in drones and advanced semiconductor packaging substrates, the company said.

Chinese chip resistor manufacturers have cut production by 10-60% amid oversupply, but major firms haven't, limiting recovery. Taiwanese firms expect improvements by late 2026.