Zhang Yu

JeniZhang13@163.com

THE pace of initial public offerings (IPOs) on the Chinese mainland is likely to slow in the second half of this year, with the total number of IPOs expected to hit 100 to 120 for the whole year and about 200 billion yuan (US$30.14 billion) to be raised, said accounting firm PwC.

The number of IPOs in the domestic stock market reached 63 in the first half of 2018, a sharp decrease from the 246 launched in the same period last year. Those 63 firms raised 93.1 billion yuan through their IPOs, down 26 percent compared with the proceeds raised from IPOs in the first half of 2017.

As the securities regulator has introduced more stringent criteria for IPO approvals since the start of 2018, many firms have withdrawn their listing applications, resulting in a reduction in the waiting time for IPO approvals, said Frank Lyn, PwC’s market leader in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong.

“Overall, the number of IPOs is expected to maintain the trend of the first half. We also anticipate the first CDR (China depositary receipt) listing in the second half of 2018,” said Lyn.

Among the 63 IPOs launched in the first half, 36 got listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, with a combined value of 64.5 billion yuan. Eight firms listed shares on the SME Board of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, raising 10.4 billion yuan. A total of 19 firms were listed on the Shenzhen exchange’s ChiNext Board, raising 18.2 billion yuan.

The IPOs were mainly from companies in industrial products, consumer goods and services, and IT and telecommunications sectors.