Nowhere outside of Silicon Valley has Apple's mysterious new tablet gadget captured the imagination of investors and the media more than in Taipei. For many in Taiwan, the expected launch on Wednesday of the new device signals more than just the arrival of an exciting new digital toy – it is the pivotal moment for an entire investment thesis.
While never officially confirmed, the majority of parts and chip是s that make up the device, widely expected to be a tablet PC, will almost certainly be made by Taiwanese manufacturers of high-tech components. Apple binds its suppliers with strict non-disclosure agreements, but that has not stopped a complete list of who is supposedly making what from leaking out into the Taiwanese press, prompting breathless articles of how investing in “Apple Tablet concept stocks” would lead to certain wealth.
Whatever the identity of Apple's suppliers, the market at least appears to be taking the concept seriously. Shares in Hon Hai, which already makes iPods for Apple and is rumoured to be the assembler for the new device, have gone up 26 per cent since last September, while shares of Novatek, which reportedly supplies integrated circuits to Apple, have gained 27 per cent over the same period.