Evergrande scraps HK$16.6 bln Hong Kong IPO

Chinese property developer Evergrande Real Estate Group Ltd<3333> shelved its initial public offerings in Hong Kong amid its failure to generate sufficient interest as well as the recent rising stock market volatility. It is the second time for Evergrande to postpone its IPO after getting regulatory approval in January.

The Guangzhou-based developer planned to issue 2.96 billion shares in Hong Kong at the price of HK$3.5 to HK$5.6 apiece to raise as much as HK$16.6 billion (US$2.1 billion). Weakening demand prompted it to prolong the subscription period of the share sale to Hong Kong individuals by one day to March 19.

Quite a number of companies have canceled or delayed IPOs in Hong Kong since the start of this year, as the benchmark Hang Seng index is fluky on continuing U.S. subprime mortgages crisis.

Evergrande may resume the Hong Kong sale when markets recover, according to Chairman Xu Jiayin.