The major Japanese electronic-parts maker Murata Manufacturing is expanding its production base in China.

This comes as the company eyes the growing demand for electric vehicles, as the smartphone market appears to be losing steam.

Murata says it's investing more than 300 million dollars in a new production facility at its factory in the eastern province of Jiangsu. It will be one of its largest investments in an existing plant. It hopes to complete the project by April 2024.

Murata says the plan is to boost production of a material that is used in making what is called multilayer ceramic capacitors.

The company has the world's biggest market share for these components which are used in making smartphones and other products.

But China's economic slowdown has cast a shadow over these items and related markets. Murata executives say they foresee more demand in the medium-to-long term for electric vehicles and high-end smartphones.

The company is also boosting production at its plants in Thailand and western Japan, as it moves to strengthen its supply chain.