KB LAMINATES surged 5.16% during intraday trading on Friday, extending a rally driven by strong demand for AI-related components and tightening supply of upstream materials.

According to a recent Citi report, surging demand from AI servers, AI power supplies, and ASIC servers has caused severe shortages of electronic-grade glass fabric, copper foil, and copper-clad laminates (CCL). August prices for 1080 series e-glass fabric jumped 17–18% month-over-month, bringing year-to-date gains to 118–165%—the largest single-month increase this year. Citi expects major CCL producers to launch a new wave of price hikes and reiterated a Buy rating on KB LAMINATES with a target price of HK$130.

KB LAMINATES itself issued a profit alert earlier, projecting first-half net profit to exceed HK$28 billion, a surge of over 200% year-over-year, fueled by supply-demand tightness and rising average selling prices for CCL and upstream materials. Formal interim results are due on August 24. While the outlook remains robust, the company noted that major shareholders have sold over HK$200 billion in shares this year, posing a potential risk factor.