The Zhitong Finance App learned that CaiTong Securities released a research report stating that demand for tungsten hexafluoride is driven by two factors: wafer shipment scale and chip process unit consumption. Relying on local resource advantages, domestic enterprises are gradually breaking through mass production technology for 5N to 7N high-purity products, gradually replacing the import share of Japan and South Korea, and becoming the core main force in global market-based supply. The industry supply pattern is expected to shift from overseas monopoly to domestic enterprises. In the context of the accelerated implementation of AI applications driving the expansion of computing power chips and advanced storage, tungsten hexafluoride is a key electronic specialty, and the industrial chain is expected to usher in the double dividend of demand amplification and localization substitution.
The main views of Caitong Securities are as follows:
Tungsten hexafluoride is the core precursor for chemical vapor deposition processes
Tungsten hexafluoride can be deposited on the surface of silicon wafers to form a dense and uniform tungsten film, which is used to construct internal circuit interconnection structures and perform electrical signal transmission functions. The complete chain of the tungsten hexafluoride industry is divided into three layers: upstream raw material mining and purification, midstream gas synthesis and refining, and downstream packaging and supporting applications. The upstream raw material process accounts for more than 60% of production costs and is also the industry's core resource barrier. The midstream purification process tests high-precision chemical processes, while the downstream is bound by hazardous chemical specifications and customer certification.
Demand is expected to continue to grow driven by AI
Demand for tungsten hexafluoride is driven by both the scale of wafer shipments and the unit consumption of chip processes. According to industry online statistics, global consumption of tungsten hexafluoride increased from 4,620 tons in 2020 to 8,901 tons in 2025, nearly doubling in five years, with a compound annual growth rate of 14%, and the growth momentum is strong. With the rapid expansion of the global AI computing power industry, the production capacity of servers and memory chips continues to expand, the number of superimposed 3DNAND stacks continues to increase, and demand for HBM high-bandwidth memory and high-end AI chips has exploded, greatly increasing the consumption of tungsten hexafluoride in a single chip. According to PW Consulting data, the global market size of high-purity tungsten hexafluoride will reach 700 million US dollars in 2025, and the market size is expected to rise to 1.18 billion US dollars by 2032, achieving a stable compound annual growth rate of 7.4% during this period.
Multiple supply restrictions favor domestic substitution
Global tungsten core resources are highly concentrated in China. Influenced by domestic export controls on tungsten raw materials and the tightening of environmental protection policies, leading overseas manufacturers withdrew from the market due to the influence of raw materials, while domestic companies relied on local resource advantages to gradually break through mass production technology for 5N to 7N high-purity products, gradually replacing the import share of Japan and South Korea, and become the core force of global market-based supply. The industry supply pattern is expected to shift from overseas monopoly to domestic enterprises.
Under the mismatch pattern of supply and demand, the price of the tungsten hexafluoride industry is expected to operate at a high level
Tungsten powder is an important factor affecting the cost of tungsten hexafluoride, accounting for about 60% to 70% of its production cost. Since 2026, the price of tungsten powder has experienced a sharp correction after a bottom rise and rapid rise, but the current raw material cost center is still significantly higher than the low level in early 2025. The rise in the bottom line of upstream tungsten raw material costs forms a strong support for the price of tungsten hexafluoride products. As of August 28, 2026, the domestic price of grade 5N tungsten hexafluoride was about 1,800 yuan/kg, up 100% from the beginning of the year; the price of grade 6N tungsten hexafluoride was about 2,250 yuan/kg, up 135% from the beginning of the year.
Risk warning: Downstream demand falls short of expectations, AI popularity falls short of expectations, raw material prices fluctuate greatly, industry competition intensifies, new material development and domestic substitution progress falls short of expectations, new construction projects and product verification progress falls short of expectations, downstream capital expenditure falls short of expectations, new technology iteration, etc.