BEIJING, April 12 (Reuters) - Chinese tech giant Huawei

has started allowing customers to register their

interest in an upcoming smartphone model it has yet to describe,

stoking anticipation that the latest version of its high-end P

series phones is on its way.

The company jumped back into the premium smartphone market

last year with its Mate 60 series, a launch celebrated by state

media as a triumph over U.S. sanctions on the firm. The launch

has also been blamed for a steep decline in Apple's ( AAPL )

iPhone sales in China.

Speculation has built up in recent months that Huawei will

soon launch the P70, which is expected to, like the Mate 60,

contain an advanced China-made chip.

Huawei's P series has advanced cameras and is known for its

sleek design, while the Mate series, also high-end, emphasises

performance and business features.

A Thursday product launch for a smart car model and laptop

did not mention phones, disappointing legions of fans who

complained online. But on Friday, checks made by Reuters at

three Huawei stores in Beijing found that interested buyers

could register to receive information about a phone without

making a deposit.

Registered customers will be notified about the phone's

specs and colours in due course, sales staff said.

Huawei did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Mate 60, notably launched during a trip by U.S. Commerce

Secretary Gina Raimondo to China, did not involve any prior

advertising or disclosure of specifications, prompting some

users and companies to tear down the phones as they sought to

work out its capabilities.

"Huawei kills two birds with one stone," Will Wong, an

analyst with research firm IDC, said of this tactic. He noted

that the firm could maintain a lower profile amid U.S.-Sino

trade tensions while generating an air of mystery and excitement

over the launches.

Archie Zhang, a smartphone analyst at Counterpoint Research,

noted that the availability of stock has been a significant

constraint for the Mate 60 and would likely be so for the P70 as

well.

Huawei has had to slow production for Mate 60 phones due to

production constraints and the need to prioritise manufacturing

of artificial intelligence chips, sources have said.