(August 3, 2026) Multiple silicone and white carbon black manufacturers in East Asia officially unveiled their capacity expansion plans on August 3, focusing on high-dispersion precipitated silica and hydrophobic fumed silica, aiming to satisfy the growing demand from global tire, coating and electronics industries. In recent months, overseas orders for mid-to-high-end silica products have kept rising steadily, while low-grade ordinary silica is facing mounting pressure from carbon tariffs and oversupply, pushing manufacturers to accelerate product transformation.   IOTA Silicone, a well-known Chinese silicone material enterprise, released its quarterly industrial layout plan today. The company will invest in two new production workshops dedicated to modified white carbon black within this year. The new projects mainly produce reinforcing silica for silicone rubber, anti-settling silica for radiation curing coatings and anti-fog agent special silica for automotive glass. After the projects are fully put into operation, the enterprise’s annual output of high-performance white carbon black will increase by nearly 18,000 tons. The official introduction shows that the upgraded production line uses clean synthesis techniques, cutting carbon emissions per ton of finished products obviously, which can easily meet the low-carbon certification standards required by European and American importers.   Industry survey data released this morning shows that Asian high-end silica accounts for an increasingly large share of global imports. North American and European coating enterprises are gradually reducing purchases from traditional European silica factories and increasing orders delivered from Chinese manufacturers, thanks to stable quality and controllable delivery cycles. The market demand for hydrophobic fumed silica used in LED packaging glue and high-temperature resistant coatings has maintained tight supply for months. Many downstream buyers have begun to sign long-term supply contracts with major manufacturers to avoid price fluctuations and stock shortages.   Market analysts pointed out that the white carbon black industry is gradually eliminating outdated backward capacity. In the next 6 to 12 months, homogeneous low-end products will face continuous price compression, while functional customized silica matched with new energy vehicles, electronic materials and environmental protection coatings will maintain strong price stability. Besides capacity expansion, Asian manufacturers are also strengthening technical research on surface modification of silica, trying to develop more lightweight, high-reinforcement new silica materials to further strengthen competitiveness in the international high-end market. Meanwhile, logistics and shipping costs have fallen moderately recently, which helps silica exporters cut comprehensive export costs and further expand overseas market layout in Southeast Asia and South America.