Nintendo shares hit-ten year high
Production of the Switch upped to two million units per month amid speculation of Chinese release
Nintendo shares have hit a ten-year high following the announcement that Switch production is being increased to two million units per month.
As reported by Digitimes, the Switch is upping production from a previous undisclosed number, estimated to be between 800,000 and one million.
Nintendo shares are now trading at their highest value since March 2008 after rising 2.66% in Tokyo on Friday, gaining a total 77% since the beginning of 2017.
The Switch, which was already Nintendo's fastest selling console, is expected to sell 20 million units by the end of the year, a source told Digitimes, far exceeding the 13 million predicted earlier this year.
The news comes amid speculation that the Switch could soon be released in China following the announcement that the smash-hit mobile game Honour of Kings was coming to western markets via the Switch.
Honour of Kings reportedly accounts for around 50% of publisher Tencent's mobile revenue and has over 200 million users in the region. By managing to strike a deal with Tencent, Nintendo could be well positioned to release in China, and the portable format of the Switch plays into the handheld dominated market where the Xbox One and Playstation 4 enjoy little success initially.