Shanghai bourse may overtake HK for IPOs
By Hu Yuanyuan (China Daily)Updated: 2007-01-05 09:58
Initial public offerings (IPOs) on the Shanghai bourse are
expected to overtake those in Hong Kong in 2007 as more Chinese companies return
home, making it Asia's biggest center for IPOs, two accounting firms said
yesterday.
"We predict the capital raised through IPOs in Hong Kong will
reach HK$150 billion in 2007, while the figure for the mainland is HK$200
billion, reflecting the trend of sustainable economic increase on the mainland,"
said Frank Lyn, PricewaterhouseCoopers' China markets leader.
Ernst &
Young shared this view but offered a different forecast.
"Propelled by
the issue of A shares by companies with listed H shares, Shanghai will overtake Hong Kong by a narrow margin
in 2007, with total IPO proceeds forecasted to reach 280 billion yuan," said
Conway Lee, general manager of Ernst & Young's China Business
Development.
The last time Shanghai raised more capital from IPOs than
Hong Kong was in 2001.
Around 60 Chinese and international firms raised
HK$325.4 billion through IPOs in Hong Kong in 2006, a record high versus HK$165
billion the previous year, according to Ernst & Young.
The rapid
increase in capital raised in Hong Kong was led by several large deals last
year, including the world's biggest IPO by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), which raised
almost HK$171.3 billion through its dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
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