According to the latest research report from Huatai Securities, in January 2026, the price of G.652. D single-mode fiber in China reached a new high in nearly seven years, with an average price of over 35 yuan per core kilometer. Huatai Securities believes that the main reason for the price increase is the change in the supply and demand pattern of the industry.
On the demand side, the global AI data center has a high demand for optical fiber. Last week, Meta signed a large order for optical fiber cables of AI data center with Corning for US $6 billion. The volume of the order is equivalent to the full year revenue of Corning’s optical communication business in 25 years. In addition, under the influence of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the demand for A2 optical fiber by military FPV UAVs has also remained high.

Firstly, the order amount of $6 billion is huge, surpassing the $5 billion order between Corning and Lumen in 2024, and is comparable to the annual revenue of Corning’s optical communication business in 2025, reflecting strong demand for data communication in North America. If the shortage of fiber optic cables in North America further intensifies in the future, given the global circulation nature of fiber optic cables, the significant increase in regional demand and supply gap will eventually be transmitted to the global market, and Chinese fiber optic suppliers are expected to undertake overseas spillover demand.
Secondly, G.657A2 optical fiber has become the core material for FPV unmanned aerial vehicle communication and battlefield monitoring systems due to its excellent bending resistance. The continuation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has led to the increasing military demand for G.657A2 fiber. In addition, the drawing efficiency of G.657A2 fiber is 10% -15% lower than that of G.652D fiber. For the same length of demand, G.657A2 fiber needs more capacity. Fiber optic manufacturers have adjusted their production schedules in pursuit of higher gross margins, tilting limited production resources of optical rod fibers towards specialty fibers, squeezing the production capacity quota of G.652D fibers and causing a significant contraction in the supply of G.652D fibers.
On the supply side, the global supply utilization rate of key upstream materials such as fiber optic preforms may reach its peak, but the expansion cycle of optical rods is relatively long, and the industry’s production capacity may not be able to increase rapidly in the short term.
Since January 2026, the supply of fiber optic preforms has continued to exceed demand, and global production capacity is approaching full capacity. The preform production lines of China’s four major fiber optic leaders are operating at full capacity, and the capacity utilization rate of overseas manufacturers is also maintained at a high level.
It is reported that with the release of the Nvidia H200 to the Chinese market, it is expected to promote the construction of domestic AI data centers and stimulate a wider demand for 800G optical modules and fiber optic cables.