Regulator approves nine IPOs

    THE securities regulator said Tuesday it has approved nine initial public offerings (IPOs), including four in Shanghai and five in Shenzhen.

    The companies and their underwriters will determine when to launch IPOs with Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said in a statement on its official microblog. No information was available about how much the nine companies aim to raise through selling shares. In late January, China’s first initial public offering under rules introduced on Jan. 1 that make listings easier was oversubscribed more than 4,000 times, showing Chinese investors remained hungry for IPOs despite recent market gyrations over growing economic concerns.

    Holdings of US treasuries decline

    CHINA’S holdings of U.S. Treasuries in December fell to a 10-month low, a government report showed in Washington, as the world’s second-largest economy reduced foreign-exchange reserves to support a weakening yuan.

    The biggest foreign holder of U.S. government debt had US$1.25 trillion in bonds, notes and bills in December, down US$18.4 billion from a month earlier and little changed from a year earlier, according to U.S. Treasury Department data released Tuesday. The portfolio of Japan, the largest holder after China, dropped US$22.4 billion to US$1.12 trillion, the data showed.

    Zheshang Bank wins nod for HK IPO

    MAINLAND lender China Zheshang Bank Co. has won approval from Hong Kong’s stock exchange for an initial public offering expected to raise around US$1 billion, IFR reported yesterday, citing people familiar with the transaction.

    The commercial lender, based in China’s eastern Zhejiang Province, could start pitching the deal to investors in early March, added IFR, a Thomson Reuters publication, citing one of the people familiar with the IPO plans.

    Ministry sees no signs of capital flight

    CHINA is not witnessing any signs of capital flight and there is no basis for continued depreciation of the yuan, a spokesman for the country’s Commerce Ministry said yesterday.

    Concerns about a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy, declining foreign exchange reserves and capital outflows have put pressure on China’s currency.

    China will not allow speculators to dominate market sentiment regarding its foreign exchange reserves, central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan was quoted as saying Saturday.