- Lingyi raised HK$8.3 billion after pricing offer at top of range
- Hong Kong IPOs and secondary listings raised $21.6 billion through June
- Investor enthusiasm for AI stocks robust, analyst says
HONG KONG/SINGAPORE, June 26 (Reuters) - Shares in a group of Hong Kong new listings opened mostly higher on Friday, bucking a 1.4% drop in the benchmark Hang Seng Index, with Chinese precision parts maker and Apple supplier Lingyi iTech rising around 3% in its debut.
Lingyi, which makes precision parts used in smartphones, tablets, robots and cars, raised HK$8.3 billion ($1.1 billion) after pricing its listing at the top of the marketed range.
It and five other companies have together raised about HK$19.8 billion ($2.5 billion) in recent public offerings, highlighting both renewed interest in Hong Kong listings and demand for companies related to artificial intelligence, chips and advanced manufacturing.
The recovery in listings has also been helped as large Chinese companies increasingly seek offshore funding.
Lingyi's shares first traded at HK$10.80, above the offer price of HK$10.18. The stock later rose to as much as HK$11.80 before settling around HK$10.50.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 1.4% while the Hang Seng TECH Index dropped 2.3%.
"Despite the overall sluggish performance of the Hong Kong stock market, investor enthusiasm for AI stocks remains robust," said Kenny Ng, a strategist at China Everbright Securities International. IPO demand was likely to stay strong into the second half of the year, judging by recent subscription levels, Ng said.
Hong Kong IPOs and secondary listings have raised $21.6 billion so far this year as of June 17, up 51% from the same period in 2025, according to LSEG data.
Besides Apple, Lingyi counts Huawei and Samsung Electronics among its customers.
It plans to use part of the proceeds to expand production for AI servers, humanoid robot hardware and AI optical communication infrastructure, which helps move data quickly between chips, servers and data centres.
Still, one analyst warned that demand for new listings had become more selective after weak trading in several recent IPOs.
Dickie Wong, executive director of research at Hong Kong-based uSMART Securities, said the new listing market had cooled quickly, citing recent IPOs that fell below their offer prices and others that traded flat despite strong demand before listing.
"We're no longer in the 'IPOs are guaranteed winners' phase, investors really need to watch the risks," Wong said.
Other debutants were mostly higher:
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SG Micro , a Chinese analog chip designer, opened up 23.4% at HK$105.10 after raising about HK$4.6 billion.
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Circuit Fabology Microelectronics Equipment , which makes imaging equipment used in printed circuit board and semiconductor production, opened up 73.7% at HK$439 after a HK$3.25 billion share sale.
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Beijing Zhongke WengeAI Science and Technology, an enterprise AI company, opened up 81.2% at HK$110.
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Keytop Parking, a smart parking systems provider, opened up 178.4% at HK$110.10.
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PT Merdeka Gold Resources' Hong Kong depositary receipts opened flat at HK$26.60 after the Indonesian gold miner raised about HK$2.39 billion.
($1 = 7.8401 Hong Kong dollars)
Reporting by Donny Kwok in Hong Kong and Yantoultra Ngui in Singapore; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and David Dolan
Source: Reuters