By Kimberley Kao
A trio of Chinese companies posted mixed performances on their first day of trading in Hong Kong, coming amid an uptick in small initial public offerings in the Asian financial hub.
Laopu Gold, a Chinese heritage gold jewelry brand, was 63% higher at 66.10 Hong Kong dollars by midday Friday, and Tianju Dihe (Suzhou) Technology, a data exchange service provider in China, gained 34% to HK$111.60.
Dida, one of China's largest carpooling platforms, was a laggard, with shares dropping 9.7% to HK$5.42.
The three collectively raised about HK$1.36 billion (US$174.2 million) in their IPOs.
Sentiment for new offerings in Hong Kong has remained muted in 2024 amid falling stock prices, China's sputtering economic recovery and geopolitical tensions that have left foreign investors cautious in what was a booming market for new listings a few years ago.
A dozen new listings in the first quarter in Hong Kong collectively raised the equivalent of US$614.7 million, down 28% from a year earlier, according to Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing. Tea shop giant Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial, which raised HK$2.46 billion in the city's biggest IPO of the year in April, has witnessed its shares slip 29% below their pricing.
The pace of listings has picked up recently, with about a dozen companies beginning trade in June alone.
Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 28, 2024 00:59 ET (04:59 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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