The Impact of the Middle East War on Global Printed Circuit Board PCB Prices
2026-03-02
The situation in the Middle East continues to escalate, with local conflicts gradually evolving into a regional war. This not only affects the global geopolitical pattern but also exerts a profound impact on the global electronic industrial chain. Known as the “mother of electronic products,” the price trend of printed circuit boards (PCBs) is closely linked to the global supply chain, energy prices, and military demand. The continuous fermentation of the Middle East War is further pushing up PCB prices from the two core dimensions of demand and cost, adding insult to injury to the already high-running PCB market and becoming a crucial variable in the industry in the first half of 2026.
Printed Circuit Board PCB Prices
I. Demand Surge: Explosive Growth in Military and Industrial PCB Demand in the U.S., Israel, and Iran
The continuous escalation of the Middle East War has directly driven the explosive growth of demand in the military, security, and communication fields in the United States, Israel, Iran, and surrounding regions, becoming the core driving force on the PCB demand side. This further squeezes industry production capacity and completely blocks the room for PCB price reductions.
Modern warfare has entered an information-based and intelligent era. Core equipment such as drones, radar, missiles, navigation systems, and field communication equipment all rely heavily on high-reliability and high-stability military-grade PCBs. Compared with civilian PCBs, military-grade PCBs have extremely high requirements for high-temperature resistance, anti-interference, anti-vibration, and dust-proof performance, with complex production processes and high technical barriers. The corresponding order unit prices are higher, delivery times are tighter, and demand is rigid, not affected by market cycle fluctuations.
As the war situation escalates, the United States, as Israel’s core ally, continues to deliver military equipment to the Middle East, with domestic military enterprises operating at full capacity and a sharp increase in military PCB orders. In Israel, due to national defense and battlefield supply needs, emergency purchases of various military electronic equipment have led to a year-on-year surge in PCB purchases. Iran, while strengthening its domestic defense, is accelerating the upgrading of electronic countermeasure systems, and demand for high-end PCBs has also shown explosive growth.
It is worth noting that the concentrated release of such military orders has further squeezed the already tight production capacity of PCBs and upstream copper-clad laminates (CCLs). According to the current industry situation, orders of major global PCB and CCL manufacturers have been scheduled for 2-3 months later, with production lines operating at full capacity. The addition of military orders has further expanded the industry’s production capacity gap. The strong support from the demand side means that PCB prices have no basis for reduction at all, but instead have the momentum to rise further. At the same time, geopolitical conflicts have driven the global defense budget into an upward cycle, and the growth in military trade demand will continue to drive strong PCB demand.
II. Cost Pressure: Skyrocketing Oil Prices Directly Push Up PCB Upstream Costs
The Middle East is the world’s core oil-producing region. The continuous turmoil of the war situation has directly led to sharp fluctuations and continuous rises in international crude oil prices. According to data from Tonghuashun Financial Database, since February 2026, the main crude oil futures price has fluctuated upward, with a single-day increase of 6.18% on February 24, closing above 490 yuan/barrel. Recently, it has remained in a high range above 480 yuan/barrel, an increase of more than 10% compared with the beginning of January. As the foundation of the core upstream raw materials for PCBs, the rise in oil prices will be transmitted through the industrial chain, directly pushing up PCB production costs and becoming another core driver of PCB price increases.
Copper-clad laminates (CCLs), the core upstream material of PCBs, have main raw materials such as epoxy resin, glass fiber cloth, and copper foil, all of which are petroleum derivatives. The rise in crude oil prices will directly drive up the prices of basic chemical raw materials such as naphtha, olefins, and aromatics, thereby pushing up the costs of core CCL raw materials such as epoxy resin and glass fiber cloth. According to industry data, for every 10% increase in crude oil prices, the price of epoxy resin will rise by 8%-12% synchronously, and the price of glass fiber cloth will rise by 5%-8%, directly leading to a significant increase in CCL production costs.
More importantly, a clear pattern has been formed in the industry: major global CCL manufacturers have full orders and their production lines are operating at full capacity, so they lack the motivation to take the initiative to reduce prices; instead, they will pass on cost pressures through price increases. The recent skyrocketing oil prices have further exacerbated the cost pressure on CCL manufacturers. It is expected that CCL prices will usher in a new round of increases in the short term, and this price increase pressure will be directly transmitted to the downstream PCB link, leading to a further rise in terminal PCB prices, forming a complete transmission chain of “oil price increase → CCL price increase → PCB price increase.”
III. Industry Outlook: No Short-Term Cooling, High PCB Prices Are Inevitable
Based on the dual impacts of the Middle East War on the demand and cost sides, combined with the current supply and demand pattern of the PCB industry, it can be clearly predicted that PCB prices will not only not drop in the short term but will also continue to remain high, and may even rise further. This pattern will last throughout the first half of 2026.
From the demand side, the duration of the Middle East War is uncertain, and military demand will continue to be released. Coupled with the rigid demand from the AI and new energy vehicle fields, the demand for the PCB industry will remain high, and the tight production capacity situation will be difficult to ease. From the cost side, affected by the Middle East situation, international crude oil prices are unlikely to drop sharply in the short term, the trend of rising CCL prices is irreversible, and PCB production costs will continue to be under pressure. In addition, the global PCB industrial chain and supply chain are affected by geopolitics, and factors such as logistics costs and the stability of raw material supply will further support the high operation of PCB prices.
IV. Enterprise Response Suggestions: Layout in Advance to Avoid Cost Increase Risks
For downstream electronic manufacturing enterprises and purchasers of PCBs, facing the pressure of rising PCB prices brought by the Middle East War, it is necessary to make response plans in advance to reduce the operational risks caused by cost fluctuations:
Lock in prices and stock up early: Enterprises with short-term (before June) material demand plans are advised to lock in long-term supply prices with PCB suppliers as soon as possible and reserve core materials in advance to avoid the risk of further price increases in the future;
Optimize procurement structure: Reasonably match PCB products of different grades, and under the premise of ensuring product quality, appropriately choose more cost-effective alternative solutions to reduce the proportion of high-end PCB purchases and ease cost pressure;
Pay attention to the situation dynamics: Continuously pay attention to the Middle East War situation and the trend of international crude oil prices, and adjust procurement plans in a timely manner to avoid supply chain disruptions or sharp price fluctuations caused by sudden changes in the situation.
Conclusion: As a major global geopolitical event, the impact of the Middle East War on the PCB industry is not a short-term fluctuation, but will continue to affect the global PCB price trend in the first half of 2026 through the dual paths of demand and cost. For industry practitioners, only by recognizing the situation and laying out in advance can they achieve stable operations in the market environment of high prices.
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