Carbon fiber, a high-performance material known as "black gold", is shining in many key fields such as aerospace, automobile manufacturing, and wind power generation due to its unique strength and lightweight characteristics. With the rising global demand for lightweight and high-strength materials, the carbon fiber market is ushering in unprecedented development opportunities.
According to the latest report "Carbon Fiber: Market Share Analysis, Industry Trends and Statistics, Growth Forecast (2025-2030)" released by the GII website recently, the global carbon fiber market size will reach 164,900 tons in 2025 and jump to 266,100 tons in 2030, with a compound annual growth rate of 10.05% between 2025 and 2030. This growth trend not only reflects the wide application of carbon fiber in various industries, but also indicates its important position in future economic development.
In the medium term, technological advancements in the aerospace and defense sector and the expansion of applications in the wind power generation sector are the major forces driving the growth of the carbon fiber market. In the aerospace sector, carbon fiber is an ideal material for aircraft and spacecraft due to its superior strength, durability, and stability.
In the defense industry, carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) are widely used in missile defense, ground defense, and military marine equipment, and their demand is rising as global defense spending increases. In 2021, global defense spending exceeded $2 trillion for the first time, with the United States, China, India, the United Kingdom and Russia ranking among the top five, accounting for 62% of the total spending, which undoubtedly provides a broad space for the application of carbon fiber in the defense field.
However, market growth has not been without its challenges. The security of the supply chain of recycled carbon fiber, as well as the potential threat of alternatives, have brought certain constraints to the development of the market. In addition, the growing popularity of recycled carbon fiber has also brought new opportunities to the market. These factors work together to shape the complex landscape of the carbon fiber market.
From the perspective of regional competition landscape, the Asia-Pacific region dominates the global carbon fiber market, with the growth of end-user industries in countries such as China and India being the main drivers. The huge procurement plans of Chinese airlines and the rapid expansion of India's wind power industry have injected strong impetus into the carbon fiber market. China plans to buy about 7,690 new aircraft worth about US$1.2 trillion over the next 20 years, while India already ranks fourth in the world in terms of wind power capacity, with a total equipment capacity of 39.25 million kilowatts. These figures not only demonstrate the market potential of the Asia-Pacific region, but also reflect the key role of carbon fiber in the global energy transition.
