INTERNATIONAL – Shares in Japan’s Nintendo Co rose more than 4 percent on Thursday after the company said it would soon launch Nintendo Switch Lite, a cheaper, handheld version of its hugely popular Switch games.
The Kyoto-based company said the new device would launch on Sept. 20 at a suggested retail price of 19,980 yen, or $199.99, compared with $299 for the Nintendo Switch.
Nintendo shares had risen on media reports earlier this year of a low-cost version of the Switch console, only to be battered after management appeared to dampen such speculation over the past few months.
In mid-morning trade, Nintendo's shares were up 3.6 percent, while the benchmark Nikkei average .N225 was flat.
“A lower-priced version should stimulate demand,” Jefferies analyst Atul Goyal wrote in a note to clients.
He said the new device directly targets the 75 million owners of Nintendo’s 3DS hand-held device, and that “this lower-priced version should add fuel to fire as this price-point directly targets those” owners.