Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd., the world's largest supplier of multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCC), officially announced a price adjustment notice in March 2026, stating that starting from April 1, MLCC products targeting AI servers and high-end automotive specifications will be fully priced up, with an increase range of 15% -35%. Among them, the high-capacity and high reliability automotive specification MLCC will increase by nearly 35%. This is also the first large-scale and full category price increase in the MLCC industry in nearly three years, which has attracted widespread attention in the industry.

MLCC, as the "food" in electronic components, is widely used in various fields such as consumer electronics, automotive electronics, industrial control, data centers, etc. Its supply directly affects the production rhythm of the global electronics industry. The core reason for the price increase in Murata is the surge in demand for high-end MLCC brought about by the outbreak of the AI industry, especially the exponential growth in demand for high-capacity, low loss, and high stability MLCC in AI servers. The MLCC usage of a single AI server is 5-6 times that of ordinary servers, directly squeezing the supply chain capacity in the consumer electronics and industrial fields, resulting in a continuous decline in global MLCC inventory, with some high-end models having inventory turnover days of less than 7 days.

In addition to the demand driven by AI, the demand for automotive grade MLCC is also continuously increasing. With the popularization of new energy vehicles, the demand for MLCC in car entertainment systems, autonomous driving modules, battery management systems, etc. has significantly increased, and vehicle grade MLCC has higher requirements for reliability, high temperature resistance, anti-interference and other performance. The production process is more complex, and the difficulty of capacity expansion is greater, further exacerbating the supply shortage. At present, the shortage of MLCC has spread from the consumer electronics field to high-end fields such as data centers and automotive electronics. The delivery time of some popular models has been extended to 8-12 weeks, and there is even a situation of "difficult to find one product".

Industry insiders analyze that in addition to Murata, major global MLCC manufacturers such as Guoju, Taikoo Electric, and Kyocera also plan to follow up with price increases in the second quarter, with an expected increase of 10% -25%. The passive component industry has officially entered a new round of shortage cycle. It is expected that this price increase trend will continue until the second half of 2026. As manufacturers gradually expand production, the tight supply situation may ease, but the shortage of high-end MLCCs will continue, especially for high-end products adapted to AI and automotive electronics fields. The supply-demand contradiction is difficult to solve in the short term.

It is reported that the core reason for this price increase is the surge in demand brought about by the outbreak of the AI industry. The demand for high-capacity and high reliability MLCCs from AI servers has greatly increased, directly squeezing the supply chain capacity in the consumer electronics and industrial sectors. At present, the shortage of MLCC has spread from the consumer electronics field to high-end fields such as data centers and automotive electronics, and the delivery time of some models has been extended to 8-12 weeks. In addition to Murata, MLCC manufacturers such as Guoju and Taiyang Yindian also plan to follow up with price increases, and the passive component industry has officially entered a new round of shortage cycle. It is expected that the price increase trend will continue until the second half of 2026.