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Hong Kong IPOs drop to 20-year fundraising low as exchange ranks ninth globally amid hopes of fourth-quarter mega deals

  • A total of 42 companies raised US$3.13 billion in the first nine months, a 65 per cent year-on-year drop and the lowest since 2003, Refinitiv says
  • Investors and analysts hope for a fourth-quarter turnaround, with US$1 billion listings by Cainiao and Midea in the works

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A pedestrian passes by Exchange Square, home of the Hong Kong stock exchange, on July 14, 2023. Photo: AP
Enoch Yiu

Share listings in Hong Kong in the first nine months of 2023 raised the smallest pile of funds in 20 years, putting the city’s bourse in ninth place in a global ranking of initial public offering (IPO) venues as investors and analysts look to the fourth quarter for a resumption of mega deals.

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A total of 42 companies raised US$3.13 billion on the main board of the Hong Kong stock exchange in the first nine months, according to data company Refinitiv.

Funding fell 65 per cent from the same period last year, hitting the lowest nine-month total since US$1.82 billion in 2003 amid the severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak. The city’s ninth-place ranking among worldwide IPO venues was the same as in June and down from third place at the end of last year.

“It reflects the continued sluggishness of the secondary market, which had an impact on the primary market for new listings, as potential issuers are waiting for market conditions to improve to obtain higher valuations,” said Kenny Ng Lai-yin, a strategist at Everbright Securities International.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po (centre left), HKEX Chairman Laura Cha Shih May-lung (centre right) and officials attend the gong striking ceremony to celebrate the 30th anniversary of H-shares at Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing on August 22, 2023. Photo: Yik Yeung-man
Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po (centre left), HKEX Chairman Laura Cha Shih May-lung (centre right) and officials attend the gong striking ceremony to celebrate the 30th anniversary of H-shares at Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing on August 22, 2023. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

In the third quarter, Hong Kong saw only 13 new listings, which raised US$862.5 million, 87 per cent lower than a year earlier and 39 per cent below the second quarter’s total.

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