The adoption of 800V HVDC power architecture in next-generation AI servers is rapidly increasing the importance of silicon carbide (SiC). In addition to market reports of SiC price hikes, new signals of capacity expansion have emerged, with a major Chinese manufacturer announcing a target to double its production capacity. Taiwanese firms in the supply chain are also benefiting, including GlobalWafers (6488-TW), United Silicon (6182-TW), and Shengxin Materials under the Guangyun (6125-TW) Group, with expectations for further enhancement in SiC-related orders and business performance.Notably, this latest upturn in the SiC industry cycle is once again being led by Chinese manufacturers initiating price hikes—a pattern highly similar to the pricing trajectory seen over the past year in mature processes and power components—drawing close attention to the SiC market.In sectors such as mature processes and power components, China benefits from a massive domestic market and robust supply chain, often being the first to sense shifts in supply and demand—'the duck knows when the river warms.' As capacity utilization begins to recover and intense price competition from the past gradually subsides, price increases typically follow, with the effects eventually spreading to overseas markets.For example, in mature processes, Chinese foundries began raising prices in the second half of last year. As market supply-demand conditions gradually improved, Taiwanese foundries followed suit in early this year. Similarly, power components saw price hikes initiated at the beginning of this year by international IDMs and some Chinese players, with Taiwanese firms subsequently following, driving the power semiconductor sector into a healthy cycle.Now, a similar script is unfolding in the SiC market. As AI server power architectures upgrade, SiC’s importance in power conversion systems has significantly increased. In solid-state transformers (SST), SiC now accounts for 40% of costs, making it a critical component. This has driven a rapid rise in capacity utilization among China’s major SiC suppliers.China’s leading IDM,芯聯集成 (688469-CN), is currently operating at full capacity and last month raised its prices across the board by 15% to 25%. To meet strong customer order growth, the company has announced an expansion of its 8-inch SiC production capacity from 7,000 wafers per month to 15,000, aiming for a doubling of output.The shift from price hikes to capacity expansion signals a clear turning point in the SiC market’s supply-demand structure, which had been under pressure over the past two years due to aggressive supply expansion and intense price competition in China. The industry is optimistic that if demand continues to strengthen, this latest round of price increases originating in China could follow the same trajectory as mature processes and power components, gradually spreading to global markets.On the Taiwanese side, GlobalWafers and United Silicon have been steadily deepening their SiC investments in recent years. GlobalWafers stated that it has indeed observed improved SiC order momentum compared to the past, with demand in certain applications beginning to recover and prices potentially improving further from the lows seen in the past two years—indicating a clear improvement in industry supply-demand balance.In addition to existing power semiconductor applications, both GlobalWafers and United Silicon are expanding into emerging 12-inch SiC markets, including thermal management and advanced packaging. Currently, both companies’ related products have already entered the sample submission phase. GlobalWafers noted that it will carefully advance future capacity planning based on customer demand and certification progress.