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Tesla challenger Xpeng loses gains in Hong Kong stock debut amid tech sector wobble

  • Stock opened 1.8 per cent higher only to lose all of the upside amid a weaker market as the Hang Seng Index slipped for a seventh day
  • Xpeng shares were earlier indicated below its HK$165 IPO price in grey-market trading late Tuesday

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Brian Gu, vice chairman of XPeng and managing director Charles Zhang (right), are seen hitting the gong on its Hong Kong trading debut on July 7, 2021. Photo: HKEX
Enoch YiuandGeorgina Lee
Chinese electric-vehicle start-up Xpeng ended its Hong Kong trading debut without any upside for investors after its US$1.8 billion stock offering, as the broader market slumped amid heightened regulatory risks surrounding technology companies.
The stock closed at HK$165, unchanged from its IPO price, after logging a 1.8 per cent gain to HK$168 in opening trades. The shares, which trade under the 9868 stock code, were earlier indicated at HK$162 in grey-market trading late Tuesday. The Hang Seng Index fell about 0.4 per cent, a seventh straight day of losses and the longest streak since June 10.

Xpeng’s American depositary shares climbed 0.7 per cent to US$44.05 in overnight US trading. The EV maker raised US$1.5 billion in August last year by selling 99.7 million American depositary shares at US$15 each. The Hong Kong listing made it the first US-listed Chinese firm with dual primary listing.

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“Given the relatively volatile market environment we are facing in recent days, we feel very gratified that Xpeng could still complete today’s listing in Hong Kong,” vice-chairman Brian Gu said after the listing ceremony. “What’s more important to us is that through a dual-primary listing, our ability in dealing with various risks or volatility that occur in the capital markets has improved.”

An XPeng P7 performance electric vehicle is seen outside the New York Stock Exchange in August 2020. Photo: Reuters
An XPeng P7 performance electric vehicle is seen outside the New York Stock Exchange in August 2020. Photo: Reuters
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The weak debut follows a slump in Didi Chuxing below its IPO price in overnight US trading, and the biggest plunge in nearly two months in 50 biggest US-listed Chinese stocks compiled by S&P. The State Council, China’s cabinet, late Tuesday said the government would be revising rules on offshore stock sales by Chinese companies and also tightening regulations on data security and cross-border flow.

The statement also came after the nation’s cyberspace security agency roiled markets by ordering ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing off the nation’s app stores on Sunday, barely days after its blockbuster US$4.44 billion IPO in New York. The agency later announced further probes into other US-listed Chinese firm, citing national security and data privacy concerns.

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