Photoresists are the core materials for achieving precise pattern transfer in chips, and their performance directly determines process accuracy. This market has long been dominated by international giants such as Japan’s JSR and Tokyo Ohka, with a weak foundation in China’s high-end sector. In recent years, domestic companies have made breakthroughs in certain categories through continuous technological efforts and have begun to replace imports. This article selects the six companies in the semiconductor photoresist field with the fastest net profit growth for the first quarter of 2025 based on the latest financial report data, for research reference. Special statement: The following content does not constitute any investment advice and is for academic discussion only.
6th Place: Huamao Technology
- Segment: Semiconductor photoresists (ArF/KrF), automotive airbags
- Concept Association: Through its subsidiary Xuzhou Bokan, it is laying out high-end photoresists, mastering 30 ArF and 34 KrF formulations, achieving domestic production of the entire chain from monomer – resin – photosensitizer – photoresist; ArF photoresists are currently advancing customer validation.
- Growth: Q1 2025 net profit attributable to the parent company increased by 60.34% year-on-year.
- Company Highlights: A leading domestic player in automotive passive safety, core supplier of airbag fabric/bags; one of the few companies achieving a full industrial chain layout for photoresists, participating in the national 02 project on ArF photoresists; stable supply of photoresist monomers to international manufacturers such as JSR and Tokyo Ohka.
5th Place: Dinglong Co., Ltd.
- Segment: Integrated circuit design, semiconductor materials, printing consumables
- Concept Association: Achieving domestic production of key materials for KrF/ArF photoresists, laying out over 20 high-end products, of which 2 have been validated and mass-produced, while the others are in research or testing stages.
- Growth: Q1 2025 net profit attributable to the parent company increased by 72.84% year-on-year.
- Company Highlights: A leading supplier of general printing consumables, the largest supplier of laser toner cartridges in China; display photoresist production capacity of 1000 tons/year, supplying nearly 20 manufacturers including Huawei, with a market share exceeding 60%; the first phase of KrF/ArF production capacity in Qianjiang is 30 tons/year and has been mass-produced, with the second phase of 300 tons/year under construction.
4th Place: Dongcai Technology
- Segment: Optical films, environmental materials, electronic materials
- Concept Association: Jointly established Dongkai Semiconductor with South Korea’s Chemax and Zhongyi Chemical to conduct synthesis and purification of core raw materials for high-end photoresists, with equipment debugging completed and entering trial production.
- Growth: Q1 2025 net profit attributable to the parent company increased by 81.16% year-on-year.
- Company Highlights: A leading domestic film materials company, focusing on new insulating materials, optical films, and environmental materials, with products applied in new energy and power grid fields; collaborating with Tsinghua University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, leading in research and development capabilities; a major producer of polypropylene films for power capacitors, competitive in the ultra-high voltage field.
3rd Place: Feikai Materials
- Segment: UV curing materials, electronic chemicals
- Concept Association: The KX series photoresists are compatible with various IC packaging, with positive resists featuring high resolution for G/H/I lines, and thick film negative resists validated by mainstream manufacturers, compatible with 2.5D/3D packaging.
- Growth: Q1 2025 net profit attributable to the parent company increased by 100.10% year-on-year.
- Company Highlights: Expanding from light-curing materials to the semiconductor and display fields, holding over 800 patents, achieving domestic breakthroughs in display/semiconductor packaging materials; mastering core technology for UV curing resins, with a complete synthesis system from small molecules to polymers.
2nd Place: Shanghai Xinyang
- Segment: Semiconductor photoresists (KrF, ArF dry/wet), silicon wafers, electronic chemicals
- Concept Association: Mass production supply of I-line and KrF photoresists to multiple wafer fabs, with ArF immersion resists in customer testing, and headquarters production capacity of 100 tons/year.
- Growth: Q1 2025 net profit attributable to the parent company increased by 171.06% year-on-year.
- Company Highlights: A major supplier of functional materials for semiconductors in China, the only one capable of mass production of electroplating and cleaning solutions for all nodes of 90-14nm copper processes; cleaning solutions after dry etching have achieved replacement for 14nm and above; ArF resists are under customer validation, and EUV resists are in preliminary research.
1st Place: Jingrui Electric Materials
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Segment:Semiconductor photoresists (G line/I line/KrF), electronic wet chemicals
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Concept Association:China’s first company to achieve mass production of photoresists, providing stable supplies of G/I line products to SMIC and others, with KrF resists in mass production and ArF resists undergoing customer sample testing.
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Growth:Q1 2025 net profit attributable to the parent company increased by 582.15% year-on-year.
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Company Highlights:A major international supplier of high-purity wet chemicals for semiconductors, with high-purity hydrogen peroxide/sulfuric acid/ammonium hydroxide reaching SEMI G5 grade for large-scale supply; leading in G/I line photoresists domestically, with rapid advancement in KrF/ArF.