Nintendo's market value closes in on Sony

Nintendo's market value is gaining on rival Sony as demand for the Wii and DS puts the company at the forefront of the console market.

According to a Reuters report, Nintendo is worth JPY 6.30 trillion (EUR 37.9 bn), compared to Sony's JPY 6.64 trillion, making it the world's second largest consumer electronics maker, as it overtakes Matsushita's share of JPY 6.23 trillion.

Both Sony and Panasonic manufacturer Matsushita register sales more than eight times higher than Nintendo.

"Nintendo is a market leader in everything it does now, which is basically the handheld as well as console gaming market," commented Hiroshi Kamide, analyst at KBC Securities.

"We haven't seen Nintendo being a market leader in both products for over a decade."

Nintendo's share price has grown by almost 400 per cent in the past two years, while Sony's has grown 72 per cent and Matsushita's has seen a 53 per cent rise.