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Shanghai Stock Exchange is world’s No 1 IPO venue as Chinese firms return home to counter US delisting threat

  • Shanghai Stock Exchange takes over the first-half IPO crown from Nasdaq, which ranked sixth, according to Deloitte
  • Thanks to jumbo IPOs like China Mobile, CNOOC and Jinko Solar, Shanghai is expected to maintain the top ranking this year

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CNOOC was one of the top Chinese companies to list in Shanghai in the first half of this year. Photo: Reuters
Shanghai Stock Exchange has overtaken Nasdaq and Hong Kong as the world’s top initial public offering venue in the first half, helped by flotations of leading mainland Chinese companies following their delisting in the US.
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According to Deloitte, a total of 68 IPOs, including jumbo offerings by China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile operator by subscribers, and CNOOC, China’s largest offshore driller, helped fundraising in Shanghai to reach HK$254.3 billion (US$32.4 billion), 49 per cent more than a year ago, when it ranked fourth behind Nasdaq, New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Hong Kong.

Together with Jinko Solar, which is still listed on the New York Stock Exchange but faces a similar delisting risk, Shanghai snapped up three of the world’s top 10 IPOs in the first half.

Shenzhen Stock Exchange and Korea Stock Exchange ranked second and third, raising HK$121 billion and HK$89.9 billion, respectively. Nasdaq, Hong Kong and NYSE ranked seventh, ninth and twelfth, respectively.

A pedestrian walks past the Shanghai Stock Exchange in Shanghai on November 4, 2020.s (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP)
A pedestrian walks past the Shanghai Stock Exchange in Shanghai on November 4, 2020.s (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP)

The Shanghai bourse’s achievement comes even as the city underwent a two-month Covid-19 related lockdown from April, underlining Beijing’s determination to keep the capital market open as worsening US-China tensions threaten to block Chinese companies’ access to offshore funding and stifle their growth.

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