Ball Screw Industry News Brief (2025–2026)

I. Industry Macroeconomic News

Accelerating Market Expansion

China’s ball screw market size reached approximately RMB 8.5 billion in 2025 and is expected to exceed RMB 10 billion in 2026, with an annual compound growth rate of about 12%. Demand for high-precision products (C3/C5 grade) keeps rising, and the localization of precision transmission components has entered an accelerated implementation phase.

Deepening Domestic Substitution

The localization rate of mid-to-low-end standard ball screws exceeds 70%. For ultra-high-precision C3 grade screws applied in high-end machine tools, semiconductors and high-end automation equipment, the localization rate is less than 30%, remaining the core research and development focus for domestic manufacturers.

Dual-track Parallel Development

Ball screws remain the mainstream for conventional industrial equipment and precision machine tools; planetary roller screws are rapidly penetrating humanoid robots and heavy-duty automated equipment, forming a complementary application pattern between the two products.

II. Technical Updates & Trends

Breakthroughs in Domestic Precision Processing Technology

Leading domestic enterprises have realized mass stable production of C3 high-precision ball screws. Great improvements have been achieved in travel positioning accuracy, surface grinding and heat treatment stability, with key performance indicators bench marking top Japanese and German brands.

Upgrading toward Lightweight and Miniaturization

Miniature ball screws adapted for humanoid robot dexterous hands, medical equipment and compact automation modules are continuously upgraded. Low-lead, small outer diameter and low-noise models have been mass-delivered.

Integrated Intelligent Sensing

Smart ball screws equipped with temperature monitoring, preload feedback and service life prediction functions have been gradually launched, meeting the predictive maintenance demands of smart manufacturing and unmanned production lines.

IV. Downstream Application Highlights

Humanoid Robots as Core Growth Driver

The industrialization of humanoid robots is accelerating in 2026. Each unit is equipped with multiple sets of miniature ball screws and heavy-duty roller screws, driving explosive demand for precision transmission components and becoming the core growth engine of the industry.

Robust Growth in New Energy Vehicles

Ball screws are widely adopted in brake-by-wire, steer-by-wire and electronic parking systems. The rising penetration rate of new energy vehicles continuously boosts orders for automotive-grade precision screws.

Stable Demand from Machine Tools & High-end Equipment

The upgrading of domestic high-end CNC machine tools, lithium battery, photovoltaic and semiconductor automation equipment generates rigid demand for high-precision ball screws. Downstream buyers are gradually switching to high-quality domestic suppliers.

V. Policies & Foreign Trade Performance

Increased Policy Support

High-precision rolling functional components are listed as key research fields for industrial machine tools and high-end manufacturing. Special subsidies and R&D incentives help enterprises reduce costs, improve efficiency and accelerate technological iteration.

Rebounding Foreign Trade Exports

Thanks to outstanding cost performance, domestic standard and precision ball screws have seen growing orders from Europe, America, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, driving a strong recovery in the export prosperity of precision mechanical parts