Hopewell Hong Kong Properties Ltd., the owner of buildings in the Wan Chai business area including Hopewell Centre, scrapped a $780 million initial public offering in the city after stock markets tumbled.
The company, a unit of Gordon Wu’s Hopewell Holdings, cited “significant deterioration in market sentiment” and “volatile market conditions” as reasons for pulling the IPO in a statement today. Hopewell Hong Kong had planned to raise as much as $780 million and start trading on June 19, according to its share-sale prospectus.
Hopewell Hong Kong’s IPO is the biggest to be scrapped in the city since May last year, suggesting a rebound in first-time share sales is losing steam as stock markets across Asia decline. Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng Index has lost 9.5 percent in the past month, curbing demand for new equity.
Companies have raised $5 billion through initial offers in Hong Kong this year, up from $1.4 billion in the same period in 2012, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The 20 companies that completed IPOs on Hong Kong’s bourse since Jan. 1 are down on average 2.2 percent from their offer prices, the data show.
China Harmony Auto Holding Ltd. (3836), which raised $215 million in an IPO last week, fell 15 percent at 10:13 a.m., heading for the worst Hong Kong debut since February 2012. Sinopec Engineering (Group) Co., which raised $1.8 billion last month in the biggest Hong Kong IPO this year, has fallen 2.9 percent from its offer price.
BOC International Holdings Ltd., Credit Suisse Group AG, Citigroup Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc and Citigroup Inc. were managing the IPO for Hopewell Hong Kong.
Philippine Casino operator Travellers International, which operates Resorts World Manila, started gauging investor demand for an IPO today, according to a term sheet obtained by Bloomberg. The company, a venture of Alliance Global Group Inc. and Genting Hong Kong Ltd., is seeking as much as 34.8 billion pesos ($806 million) from the offering in Manila, according to a regulatory filing last month.