In 2026, the global manufacturing industry will once again face upward pressure on raw material prices. With the continued expansion of demand from energy transition, power infrastructure construction, and AI-related sectors, key metals such as copper, gold, and silver have seen significant price increases in recent years. Coupled with insufficient investment in capacity expansion, supply constraints, and geopolitical interference, the prices of many industrial materials have remained high and volatile, with steel and stainless steel prices also rising successively. As raw material costs continue to rise, the impact on the industrial chain begins to spread downstream.
The core of this round of raw material price increases remains the structural problem of supply growth failing to keep pace with demand, but geopolitical and policy uncertainties are also amplifying this trend. On the supply side, long-term underinvestment in the global mining industry and lengthy development approval processes have limited the release of new capacity. Meanwhile, production cuts, quota adjustments, or supply disruptions in some major producing regions, such as the reduction of nickel ore quotas, have fueled market expectations of supply contraction. On the demand side, the energy transition, grid upgrades, electric vehicles, and the construction of AI data centers are driving increased usage of base metals such as copper and nickel, as well as industrial precious metals such as silver. Regarding geopolitics, anticipated changes in tariffs and trade policies can easily trigger companies to stockpile in advance, compete for materials, and engage in inter-regional bidding, leading to a redistribution of raw material flows. This further increases price volatility and a high-level consolidation pattern, ultimately accelerating the transmission of cost pressures to the manufacturing sector.
Besides base metals, precious metals, on which the electronics industry heavily relies, have also seen significant price increases. Silver prices, after breaking through $60 per ounce in 2025, have continued to climb, more than doubling this year. This has led to a substantial increase in the cost of materials such as silver paste, directly pushing up the production costs of passive components and electronic materials. Palladium, ruthenium, and tin have also strengthened due to demand for electronic components. On the other hand, chemical and plastic materials have remained high due to energy prices, transportation costs, and supply-demand adjustments, simultaneously increasing material cost pressures across the entire manufacturing industry. Overall, this wave of raw material price increases is not a single commodity's trend, but a comprehensive surge across metals and chemical materials, impacting various industrial chains to varying degrees.