Companies

China firms raise decade-high amount in H1 IPOs

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-07-21 14:32

Chinese companies raised the most this decade in first-half initial public offerings as Huatai Securities Co and more than 170 other firms tapped the country's financial markets.

Companies raised 215.3 billion yuan ($31.8 billion) from IPOs, said Tong Daochi, the China Securities Regulatory Commission's director general of international affairs, at a conference in Shanghai. The amount is the highest so far this century for China, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

China, home to the worst performing benchmark Asian stock index, may be the world's biggest IPO market this year as companies are likely to raise 500 billion yuan in Shanghai and Shenzhen, PricewaterhouseCoopers said this month. The first-half tally doesn't include Agricultural Bank of China Ltd's $19.2 billion July sale in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

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"The rising interest in the small and medium board in Shenzhen and ChiNext definitely pushed the booming IPO market," said Wesley Li, an analyst at research company ChinaVenture. "The regulator has also become more skillful in controlling the rhythm of approving new IPOs."

Most of the IPOs in the first half were from companies selling shares on the small and medium-sized board and the ChiNext startup board, both in Shenzhen, said CSRC's Tong.

The nation's stocks regulator is considering rule revisions that would make it easier for smaller Chinese companies to list in Hong Kong, Tong said.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has declined 23 percent this year on concern measures by the government to control real-estate speculation and rising consumer prices will damp economic growth.

China will have 300 new listings in 2010, up from 99 last year, according to a July 5 release from PwC.