Japan Solder Industry Seeks Low Silver Products

Japanese solder makers try to reduce silver content when silver price tripled in past 3 years. Some makers started to develop less silver products though the market finally accepted lead free products with 3% silver. Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment or RoHS requires lead free solder for electronic devices. Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA) recommended 3% silver and 0.5% copper solder and domestic market accepted the product. With more use by solder, silver price increased to more than 50,000 yen per kilogram in 2007 compared with less than 20,000 yen in 2003. Stick solder includes around 1,900 yen tin and around 1,600 yen silver based on the current market compared with 800 yen for tin and 600 yen for silver in 2003. Japanese makers developed solder with 0.3% silver and try to commercialize the product. They expect the new product contribute to lower cost though they still have some hurdles to clear for the commercialization.