(Yicai) March 18 -- Shares of Avary Holding rose after the world's biggest supplier of printed circuit boards said it will invest CNY11 billion (USD1.5 billion) to expand its high-end products output at its factory in the Chinese city of Huai'an to better meet surging demand from artificial intelligence industry customers.

Avary [SHE: 002938] jumped 6.6 percent to CNY54.90 (USD7.98) a share in Shenzhen today, after soaring by as much as 7.2 percent at one point.

Avary's board approved the new Huai'an capacity expansion plan at a meeting yesterday, the Shenzhen-based company announced late on the same day. The new production will focus on cutting-edge sectors, including AI, embodied intelligence robots, smart connected vehicles, and optical communications, it added.

The move aims to seize development opportunities brought by the wave of AI advancement and application, accelerate the layout of high-end PCB output, and speed up tech upgrading and iteration of Avary's products, the company said, without disclosing further project details, including construction schedule, product mix, or annual capacity.

Avary will leverage its influence as a leading supply chain company while boosting capacity in Huai'an, it pointed out. It will guide the gathering of upstream, downstream, and extended industries in the city to build a high-quality next-generation information technology industrial ecosystem, it said.

The latest high-end PCB capacity expansion plan is Avary's third in about half a year, after unveiling a plan to invest CNY8 billion (USD1.1 billion) in Huai'an in August and CNY4.3 billion at its factory in Thailand in December.

Avary has led the global PCB market for eight straight years. It is one of a few large-scale professional producers worldwide with integrated research and development, design, manufacturing, sales, and service capabilities across a full range of PCB products, boasting a diversified and high-quality product portfolio.

About 63 percent of Avary's PCB revenue came from communications equipment customers in the first half of last year, 32 percent from consumer electronics and computer customers, and the rest from auto and server customers, according to its earnings report.

Editor: Martin Kadiev