Present situation and future trend of printed circuit board industry

1. printed circuit board introduction

Printed circuit board, referred to as "PCB" refers to the copper coated plate in accordance with the predetermined design of the copper circuit board, its main function is to make a variety of electronic components in accordance with the predetermined circuit connection, electrical connection. Printed circuit board is a key interconnect for the assembly of electronic parts. It not only provides electrical connection for electronic components, but also carries the functions of digital and analog signal transmission, power supply and radio-frequency and microwave signal transmission and reception of electronic equipment. The vast majority of electronic equipment and products need to be equipped with it, so it is known as the "mother of electronic products". Printed circuit board is a bridge that carries electronic components and connects circuits. It is widely used in communication electronics, consumer electronics, computer, automotive electronics, industrial control, medical instruments, national defense and aerospace and other fields. It is an indispensable electronic component in modern electronic information products.

2.policy environment analysis

Printed circuit board is an indispensable basic component of electronic information products. The development level of printed circuit board industry can reflect the development speed and technical level of a country or region's electronic information industry to some extent. The state has issued a series of policies to vigorously support the printed circuit board industry, and policy planning for the printed circuit board industry has been continuously published. It provides a good policy environment for the sustainable development of the industry.

3. Analysis of economic environment

According to Prismark, the output value of the global PCB industry in dollar terms increased by 23.4% year on year in 2021 (and 15.6% year on year in yuan terms) due to commodity price increases, dollar depreciation and increased end demand. In the medium and long term, the industry will maintain stable growth. Global PCB output is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 4.8% from 2021 to 2026. From the perspective of region, PCB board industry in all regions of the world shows a continuous growth trend. Among them, under the condition of a high base in 2021, the compound growth rate of mainland China will still reach 4.6%, indicating steady growth.

4. Analysis of social environment

With the continuous upgrading and application expansion of 5G communication, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, smart wear, smart home and other technologies, the global demand for chips and chip packaging has increased significantly. As an important material for chip packaging, packaging substrate also enters a period of rapid development with the increasing demand of various downstream application fields, and has a good market prospect.

In recent years, with the continuous development of emerging markets such as artificial intelligence, intelligent connected vehicles, 5G, cloud computing and the Internet of Things, the market size of the global semiconductor industry has shown an overall growth trend. According to the World Association of Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS), the global semiconductor industry sales volume increased from $412.2 billion in 2017 to $555.9 billion in 2021, with a compound annual growth rate of 7.8%. It is estimated that the global semiconductor industry market size will reach $605.6 billion in 2022.

5. Analysis of technology patents

Printed circuit board belongs to knowledge, technology intensive industry. During the period of 2013-2021, patent applications for printed circuit board in China are on the rise as a whole. In 2021, the number of patent applications for printed circuit board in China is 1,483, and from 2022 to now, the number of patent applications for printed circuit board in China is 770. The high-end products of PCB industry, such as packaging substrate, are still monopolized by Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and so on. Many enterprises in mainland China are also actively developing and expanding production. China needs to constantly increase research and development efforts to accelerate the domestic replacement of high-end products.

For PCB products, markets such as wireless communication, server and data storage, new energy and intelligent driving, and consumer electronics will remain important growth drivers for the industry in the long run. With the continuous emergence of new application scenarios such as the Internet of Things, AI and smart wearable in the 5G era, various terminal applications also bring a surge in data traffic. While downstream electronic products increase the consumption of PCB circuit board, they also further drive PCB to the direction of high speed, high frequency, integration, miniaturization and thin and light. The demand for high level PCB products such as high layer, high frequency and high speed, HDI and rigid flex will continue to grow.