But NYSE and NASDAQ are not the only contenders for Chinese listings. According to statistics from consulting firm Richlink International Capital Co Ltd, 99 mainland companies launched offshore initial public offerings (IPOs) last year, compared with 70 in 2005. The total money raised was $44 billion, an increase of 120 percent from that of 2005.

Hong Kong and Singapore were the most popular destinations for mainland companies. While 43 companies listed in Hong Kong, 24 listed in Singapore last year.

When it comes to attracting large State-owned enterprises (SOEs) to launch offshore IPOs, Hong Kong's pull is unmatched. In 2006, it saw giant IPOs launched by Bank of China and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, while Singapore Exchange is traditionally stronger in attracting manufacturers.

Apart from Hong Kong and Singapore, LSE's second market, the Alternative Investment Market (AIM), has been scoring big on China since 2005. Pouncing on the opening created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act five years ago by US regulators in the wake of corporate scandals, this bourse has attracted as many as 16 Chinese companies to list in London in 2006.

"It's because the listing barrier of AIM is comparatively low. And the cost accounts for just 5 to 20 percent of the total money a company raises," says Xue Haibin, a lawyer with Zhonglun W&D Law Firm, to explain the exchange's charm.

Faced with the threat of losing its listing appeal to the likes of AIM, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on May 23 that it is easing compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley, especially Section 404 of the corporate governance law, which focused too much on cumbersome rules and needlessly added to costs.

"It is also possible that the SEC will adopt the International Financial Report Standards rather than the US GAP," Michael Yang, executive director of NYSE Group Asia Pacific, said at a financial forum in the 10th Beijing Hi-tech Expo on May 26.

Related readings:  S Korean listing could trigger ripple effect  Overseas stock exchanges eye Chinese equities  NYSE and Nasdaq to woo listings in China  Nasdaq expects representative office in Beijing  Foreign exchanges allowed to set up rep offices  China to become Nasdaq's biggest overseas market

Financial Times data show that in 2006, the total cost of 400 companies to list in the United States reduced by 23 percent from 2005. As the listing cost in the United States is expected to go down even more, the war of the bourses for Chinese affections will only get fiercer.

While choosing the exchange to list, valuation is often the primary consideration. But the performances of companies can vary significantly after listing.

Companies such as the well-known New Oriental School and Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co Ltd performed well on their debut in the NYSE, with opening trading prices surging respectively 46.7 percent and 22 percent from their IPO prices.

But the share price of another Chinese firm, Xinhua Finance Media, dropped 8 percent minutes after its trading began, closing 11.7 percent lower than its IPO price. In the next two months, the company's market value shrunk another 48.38 percent, after a series of top officials resigned and lawsuits were launched by angry investors as it came to light that the company's former chief financial officer Shelly Singhal mislead the market ahead of the company's IPO.

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