Tianqi Lithium ends trading debut on par as Hong Kong’s biggest IPO this year banks on bright industry outlook

Tianqi Lithium’s stock price fell as much as 11.4 per cent amid concerns about valuations, social media influence before paring loss

Tianqi Lithium collected HK$13.1 billion in net proceeds by pricing its offering at the top end of the marketed range of HK$69 to HK$82 each

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Tianqi Lithium’s executives at the ceremonial gong-hitting event at the stock exchange on July 13. Photo: SCMP

Published: 8:30am, 13 Jul 2022Updated: 5:34pm, 13 Jul 2022

Tianqi Lithium, Hong Kong’s biggest initial public offering (IPO) in 2022, ended its first day of trading on par, erasing a drop of as much as 11.4 per cent after the company said industry fundamentals support its earnings outlook.

The stock closed at HK$82, unchanged from the offer price, at the close of trading. It earlier slumped to as low as HK$72.65, deeper than the HK$75.50 level indicated by grey-market prices on Tuesday. The Hang Seng Index flipped to lose 0.2 per cent.

A two-day rout in Tianqi Lithium’s shares in Shenzhen preceded its debut, spooking investors. They slumped 14 per cent over two days, having already doubled over the past three months. Postings on mainland social media by a private investor questioned its upside potential.

Shareholders “should not worry” about the stock prices as the company is operating in an industry with solid fundamentals, President and chief executive officer Xia Juncheng said during the listing ceremony on Wednesday.

Screengrabs show Tianqi Lithium pre-trading prices indicated by local brokerages on July 12 before its trading debut in Hong Kong. Photo: SCMPs

“Lithium prices are based on the law of supply and demand, and in the short term, supply cannot catch up with demand,” he added. “Therefore, as long as there’s a gap to fill, we are very confident about lithium prices.”