Investing.com — Shares of Apple Inc.'s Asian suppliers surged on Thursday, tracking a surge in the iPhone maker's shares this week after the company unveiled a slew of artificial intelligence features for its flagship device.
Apple's shares have surged nearly 10% so far this week, briefly overtaking Microsoft (NASDAQ:) as the world's most valuable company after investors reacted positively to the company's developers conference earlier this week.
Analysts see the AI features as a catalyst for a sales recovery for Apple, especially for the iPhone, which has seen sluggish sales in recent quarters.
The iPhone maker's rising sales bode well for its Asian suppliers, sending their shares higher this week.
South Korean memory chip manufacturer Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (KS:) And SK hynix Co., Ltd. (KS:) rose 2.4% and 3.7%, respectively. Samsung SDI (KS:), which supplies batteries to Apple, rose 0.5%.
In Taiwan, TSMC (TW:) (NYSE:), the world's largest contract chipmaker and a key Apple supplier, rose 2%. Foxconn Foxconn Precision Industries Co., which assembles iPhones and other devices for Apple Inc., rose 0.4%. Both stocks have posted big gains this week.
In China, AAC Technologies (OTC:) Holdings (HK:), which makes audio components for Apple, rose 2%, and BYD (HK:), which supplies battery technology to Apple, rose nearly 8%.
Investors welcomed Apple's AI plans, hoping that the introduction of new features such as voice command capabilities and improved photo editing will help boost sluggish iPhone sales. Because most of the new AI features are only available on new iPhones, their introduction could spark a new upgrade cycle among customers.
AI is expected to further propel Apple's software services, whose revenue has remained strong so far despite sluggish device sales.
