WATERLOO, Ont. -- Research In Motion (TSX:RIM) shares are surging almost five per cent after the BlackBerry maker said it has released the 'gold' build of its developer toolkit.

The build, the company says, contains all the final elements developers need to create apps from the coming BlackBerry 10 operating system.

The Waterloo, Ont.-based company also says developer interest in BlackBerry 10 is growing ahead of it being unveiled on Jan. 30.

RIM says top application developers have already committed to building apps for the new system.

In afternoon trading, RIM shares were up 58 cents, or 4.94 per cent, to $12.32 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

BlackBerry 10 is widely considered a make or break product launch for Research in Motion.