More companies raise funds from A-share market

New listings in the A-share market rose 92 percent from a year ago in 2017 with 436 companies raising fresh funds of 230.4 billion yuan ($35 billion) in the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses, said a new report.

It also surpassed the earlier record of 347 IPOs set in 2010, said the report.

The total number of IPOs on the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, which saw floats from 160 companies in 2017, ensured that the two markets lead the world in terms of deal numbers.

However, the amount of funds raised through IPOs in the A-share market was only 47 percent of that in 2010, as small and medium-sized enterprises dominated the IPO market with individual proceeds of less than 1 billion yuan, the report said.

In terms of sectors, industrial enterprises continued to rank first in IPO numbers and funds raised. It was followed by technology, media and telecommunications, consumer products and retail, materials and healthcare.

"It is worth noting that the IPO numbers of the consumer products and retail industry rose 135 percent year-on-year and the funds raised increased 126 percent, incentivized by China's shift to a consumer-oriented economy," said Jane Yang, EY assurance partner.

The financial industry, on the contrary, dropped out of the top five sectors both in number of IPOs and funds raised, due to the ongoing regulatory efforts to control financial risk, Yang said.

She expects the current trend of IPOs by sectors to continue next year.

According to the China Securities Regulatory Com-mission, of 508 companies waiting to be listed in the A-share market as of Dec 22, industrial enterprises accounted for 22 percent, TMT 21 percent, materials 15 percent, healthcare 10 percent, and consumer products and retail 9 percent.

Only one city commercial bank was listed in the A-share market in 2017, compared with eight in 2016. CSRC data show that 15 commercial banks were still waiting for A-share IPOs as of Dec 22, and 11 of them were city commercial banks.

In 2017, the market saw a increase in the IPOs of Chinese companies in the US, owing to the continued rally of the US capital market, the report said. The number of IPOs hit a new record of 25, compared with 15 in 2014, with the total amount raised at $4 billion.

"Fintech and education companies accounted for most of China's IPOs in the US, reflecting the latest development trend of China's new economy," said King Li, EY assurance partner.

"The demand for IPOs in the US is expected to continue in 2018," Li added.