China’s solar panel exports soared to a record in March, China customs and industry data showed, as Southeast Asia and Africa stockpiled ahead of expected price increases and fallout from the Iran War boosted demand, according to a news report from Reuters on Friday.
The news medium reported that Chinese customs data showed that solar panel exports surged 42.2% to 1.75 million metric tons in March, equivalent to 13.3% of volumes in all of 2025 while the shipments were valued at $3.61 billion, up 67% from a year earlier and 125% from February,
According to Reuters, countries in Southeast Asia and Africa rushed to import panels ahead of expected price increases due to an end to China’s export tax refunds on April 1, with the surge amplified by disruption to energy supplies due to the U.S.-Israel war on Iran, analysts said.
It quoted the Head, solar research at consultancy Rystad Energy, Marius Mordal Bakke, as saying that “silver prices fell from an all-time high in January and drove production costs lower, helping increase production and address demand ahead of a price increase from April.”
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This is even as investors are betting on renewable energy stocks in China, the dominant maker of solar gear, on expectations that the Middle East tensions will boost global demand for renewables.
A Director at Fitch Ratings, Jing Yang, said he expected China’s solar exports to drop significantly in April from March, but said 2026 exports could be supported by incremental demand “due to elevated oil prices and energy security concerns.”
It would be recalled that S&P Ratings had in February projected China’s 2026 solar exports would remain flat-to-slightly down versus 2025 because of weaker global demand before the Iran war.
Earlier on Thursday, Reuters reported that demand for rooftop solar systems across Europe had surged since the start of the Iran war, as households rush to shield themselves from soaring power prices triggered by the US-Israeli war against Iran, causing the worst global energy disruption in huma history.
Reuters reported that the conflict had pushed oil, gas and electricity prices sharply higher, negatively impacting companies and households alike and accelerating efforts to find cheaper alternatives and reduce exposure to volatile energy markets.
The online medium further clarified: “Solar is among those options, with demand from homeowners more than doubling for some industry players since the war began in late February, according to interviews with more than half a dozen energy equipment wholesalers and renewable utilities in Germany, Britain and the Netherlands.
“It’s a timely boost for a technology that accounts for about a third of Europe’s total power capacity, but saw the pace of new installations dip last year for the first time in nearly a decade. Industry advocates argue Europe still needs to do far more to cut its reliance on imported oil and gas.
Commenting on the worrisome situation, Co-founder of German privately owned solar equipment wholesaler Solarhandel24, Janik Nolden, said “the war has merely exposed the problem that has existed all along: energy dependency”, adding that European governments has been “walking into a trap”.
