Rare "monosodium glutamate" supply and demand mismatch exacerbates, germanium prices rise more than 80% in six months.

As of June 18, the price of germanium ingots has soared to 25,000 yuan per kilogram, an increase of over 83% compared to the end of 2025. The driving force behind this round of price spikes is primarily the strong demand for optical fiber in the field of AI computing infrastructure. In the manufacturing of optical fibers, germanium tetrachloride plays a key role like "MSG". It is the core raw material for doping the fiber core of the optical fiber preform rod, mainly used to improve the refractive index of the fiber core, allowing for better transmission performance of the optical fiber. "In the raw material cost of the optical fiber preform rod, the proportion of germanium is very low, but due to the high purity requirements of downstream germanium materials, and the concentrated supply of germanium in China, and the material's strong irreplaceability, compared to other materials, the supply and demand contradiction of germanium will be more obvious." A leading optical fiber preform rod manufacturer explained. Regarding the rising price of germanium, Shanghai Steel Union analyst Chen Qiqi stated that the reason is the tight supply of raw materials and increasing demand. In the short term, germanium products are supported by high bidding prices for raw materials. In addition, due to the significant increase in demand for optical fibers, solar cells, and military industry this year, it is expected that the price of germanium ingots will oscillate at a high level in the short term, while the long-term trend is expected to continue to rise. Some institutions predict that the demand growth rate for optical grade germanium products will remain between 15% and 20% in the next two years.