A man works at a workshop of Midea Group in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, March 3, 2023. In recent years, south China's Guangdong Province has accelerated intelligent and digital transformation of manufacturing industry to promote high-quality development. Up to now, there are 67,000 industrial enterprises above the designated size and 69,000 high-tech enterprises in the province.(Photo: Xinhua)

Midea Group, the world's largest home appliance maker, announced on Sunday plans to raise up to HK$27 billion ($3.46 billion) in an IPO at the Hong Kong Stock Market, possibly the biggest IPO at the bourse this year.

The company, which is already listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, South China's Guangdong Province, has allocated 492.1 million shares for the Hong Kong offering. 

The new shares will be available for subscription from Monday to Thursday, with official trading set to start on September 17, according to company filings.

The upcoming issuance is likely to be the largest IPO since JD Logistics's Hk$24.113 billion offering in May 2021, and will also be the biggest IPO in Hong Kong this year, surpassing Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial's nearly HK$2.6 billion IPO in April.

Analysts are optimistic that a major IPO by a well-known company like Midea, based in Guangdong, could further invigorate Hong Kong's listing ecosystem and boost investor confidence there, as the city is expanding and optimizing the Stock Connect mechanism with the Chinese mainland bourses, and seeking to attract top international issuers and capital.

The primary purpose of the IPO was "not raising capital". Instead, the offering was motivated by the innovative, efficient, and fast-paced nature of the Hong Kong Stock Market, Midea executives said at the 2023 annual shareholders' meeting in April.

The company stated last November that the funds raised from the Hong Kong IPO would be used to support research and development, improve its manufacturing system, and upgrade its global sales network.

Market analysts from Guotai Junan Securities and Zhongtai Securities Research Institute said that the IPO in Hong Kong was a strategic move to boost Midea's overseas business and expand its global footprint.

The influx of Chinese mainland-based corporate giants' listings in Hong Kong highlights the opening-up of the city's financial market and its growing appeal to investors, which is expected to shore up Hong Kong's role as a leading global financial hub, the analysts said.

Midea first went public at the Shenzhen bourse in 2013. 

Midea is the world's largest home appliance manufacturer in terms of market value and business revenue. In the first half of this year, the company reported a total revenue of 218.1 billion yuan, up by 10 percent year-on-year, with its net profit attributable to the parent company reaching 20.8 billion yuan, up 14 percent year-on-year.

Global Times