China Railway Construction makes muted HK debut

China Railway Construction, which raised US$5.4 billion in its combined Hong Kong and Shanghai initial public offering, saw its shares rise 14% on their Hong Kong debut on Thursday, Reuters reported. The relatively subdued performance, which came on a day when the Hang Seng Index fell by more than 2%, was widely expected. One broker said China Railway Construction needed to post a first-day gain of around 20% to reassure investors. The failure to do so casts further doubt on China Pacific Insurance’s US$4 billion IPO, which was delayed on Monday. China Evergrande Real Estate’s US$2.1 billion Hong Kong offering is still proceeding. China Railway Construction’s shares rose 28% on their Shanghai debut on Monday – weaker than expected – although the stock was up 32% on its IPO price as of Wednesday.