One South Korean and five mainland Chinese companies plan to kick off listings in Hong Kong, aiming to raise a total of about HK$11.47 billion.
But traders say that the euro-zone crisis and faltering US economy are dampening sentiment and deterring firms from going ahead with the mega deals the market is hoping for.
A market source close to the US$4 billion Hong Kong initial public offering of state-owned insurer People's Insurance said its July listing would be delayed until later this year.
Traders said nervousness in the Hong Kong and mainland markets had sidelined issuers and institutional investors, making it difficult for large deals to secure enough cornerstone investors to succeed.
Inner Mongolia Yitai Coal was the biggest of the eight deals braving the market next month. It opens subscriptions today, aiming to raise as much as HK$8.62 billion. Seven corporate investors, including coal users and traders as well as private-equity investors, have agreed to take 43 per cent of the shares.
A former state-owned enterprise privatised by its employees, Yitai is the first B-share company to seek a secondary listing in Hong Kong. B-share companies are mainland-listed with shares denominated in US dollars. It is offering the Hong Kong shares at HK$43 to HK$53 each, or 10.5 to 12.9 times last year's earnings per share. Its rival China Shenhua Energy trades at 9.2 times last year's earnings, while China Coal Energy trades at 6.7 times and Yanzhou Coal Mining 5.3 times.
Yitai has forecast net first-half profit of at least 3.09 billion yuan (HK$3.79 billion), and will use proceeds to fund an 8.45 billion yuan acquisition of its parent's assets.