The worldwide release of Microsoft Corp's touchscreen-optimized Windows 8 operating system in Shanghai Tuesday is expected to lead to a surge in investor interest for China's listed touchscreen manufacturers, technology experts told the Global Times.
A beta version of Windows 8 with touch-enabled features was launched to the public in late February, resulting in a moderate boost in investor confidence for domestic touchscreen makers at that time, Kuai Jian, an electronics analyst from Everbright Securities' research department, explained to the Global Times.
Share prices of the 16 mainland-listed touchscreen display manufacturers have grown by 19.17 percent on average through the year to date, according to exchange data.
The Chinese touchscreen industry is still relatively new compared to other countries, such as the US, which have advanced high technology sectors, said Kuai. Until last year, Chinese companies were primarily assemblers of touchscreen products and few local enterprises were interested in sourcing the materials or developing the core technologies needed to produce screens of their own; although policy support from Beijing and strong worldwide demand for tablets, smartphones and other touch-enabled devices led more companies into the manufacturing side of the business, Kuai explained.
Touchscreen functionality is a major feature of Microsoft's latest operating system, and the arrival of this system is expected to push up display orders for domestic manufacturers, a development which will undoubtedly attract the notice of local investors, Wang Xianyi, an electronics analyst from Huarong Securities' research department, told the Global Times.
"Microsoft already has a large consumer base in China, where its MS Office suite is hugely popular, which will benefit the sales of its new operating system across the country and further drum up demand for supporting hardware," Wang said.
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