Global IT giant Royal Philips Electronics said Wednesday it planned to nearly double its research and development (R&D) staff on the Chinese mainland to1,300 within the next two years to tap the fast-growing market.

It had already employed 700engineers at 15 R&D centers on the Chinese mainland, and most of the new jobs would be created in Shanghai, the Dutch company said.

Philips has repeatedly said China is the most important market in the Asia Pacific region. Its total revenue in China reached more than US$7.5 billion last year with cumulative investment exceeding US$3.4billion.

In an earlier statement, the company said it planned to double its revenue in the country to more than US$15.4 billion by2007, nearly half of its current global revenue.

Mobile displays has become one of its core businesses in recent years, with the total output hitting1 billion units earlier this week.

More than 90 percent of the first billion displays were produced in China, Harold Hoskens, CEO of Philips Mobile Display Systems, said.

(Shenzhen Daily December 3, 2004)