Glass fibre prices are rising in Taiwan as a direct result of increased demand from a boom in the local printed circuit board (PCB) and industrial plastics application markets. Currently, the Taiwanese PCB market is estimated to consume 10,000-12,000 tonnes of glass fibre each month and is expected to increase this demand by 15-20% during this year. Consumption in the industrial plastics sector is around the 3,000 tpm mark, and this is also forecast to increase significantly this year by around 10%. On the back of this rapid market growth, glass fibre suppliers are now upwardly adjusting their prices to make the most of these encouraging times. In fact, according to one producer there is insufficient capacity to fulfill these orders and as such the price increases actually serve as a diplomatic way of turning down orders by deterring some would-be purchasers.
