The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has tentatively selected about eight more mainland enterprises to issue shares abroad, according to investment banking sources.
The fifth batch of listing candidates would be divided into two tranches, the first comprising about eight companies, dominated by infrastructure plays, the sources said.
The list could be announced as soon as next month, a source suggested, but others believed Beijing was in no rush in view of difficult market conditions.
There was concern over a possible oversupply of infrastructure stocks but investment bankers said their defensive quality was attractive to investors in present market conditions.
Sources said possible candidates for overseas issues included the infrastructure arms in Shandong and Hebei provinces, and Wenzhou city. Other possibilities were Ningbo port, Air China, Capital Airport, Heilongjiang Beidahuang Agribusiness Corp and an agribusiness operation in Guangdong.
Also tipped were the infrastructure arm of Dalian city and the tourism industry in Zhejiang province.
A Shandong provincial communications bureau official said it planned to raise at least two billion yuan (about HK$1.86 billion) from an overseas listing of its roads.