The initial public offering by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) has attracted a full book of retail orders, topping HK$138 billion, despite the recent rout of technology stocks in the United States.
Sources close to the IPO arrangers said the retail tranche was 200 times oversubscribed, while the institutional portion was more than 13 times oversubscribed.
SMIC, the mainland's largest chip foundry, hopes to raise US$1.79 billion in its dual Hong Kong and New York listings.
A sell-off in the Nasdaq Composite Index does not appear to have dampened appetites. The key barometer of technology stocks is down 9.65 per cent from its high point this year. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, meanwhile, is trading 15 per cent off its peak.
The institutional tranche closed on Wednesday in New York, London and Hong Kong. The retail portion closed at noon yesterday. The price was to be determined late last night. With the strong response, sources expected the offer to be priced at HK$2.69 per share, the high end of its indicated range.
Hong Kong retail brokerages such as Tai Fook Securities and SHK Online had provided between HK$1.5 billion and $2 billion each in margin financing for clients wanting to purchase SMIC shares. The margin lines were fully exhausted on the first day the offer was open to retail investors.
