Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology Ltd (零跑汽車) is hoping to raise more than US$1 billion with an initial public offering in what would be the largest debut so far this year in Hong Kong.
The Hangzhou-headquartered company is offering about 131 million shares priced at HK$48 to HK$62, according to a prospectus filed with the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong yesterday.
The listing will be a test of investor appetite in China’s EV sector. The industry has so far avoided the kind of sudden scrutiny from regulators that has bedeviled other technology sectors and hobbled profits.
China’s EV market is particularly competitive, with manufacturers jostling to take advantage of an industry boosted by generous purchase subsidies from local governments.
The Chinese government introduced a string of measures, including a tax break extension, in July to stimulate sales of electric vehicles against the backdrop of an economic slowdown.
The measures are supposed to support the economy at a time when sporadic COVID-19 lockdowns around the nation have dampened consumer enthusiasm and business confidence.
Founded in 2015, Leapmotor focuses on the mid to high-end EV market, with a price range of 150,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan (US$21,400 to US$42,800).
Cofounder Fu Liquan (傅利泉) also leads surveillance firm Dahua Technology Co (大華技術), one of the world’s largest manufacturers of security cameras.
Surveillance industry research group IPVM in 2020 alleged that Dahua developed “discriminatory software” used to track Uighurs in China’s Xinjiang region.
China’s EV market is huge, covering everything from luxury vehicles to more affordable models. Many EV manufacturers are looking to build an overseas presence and raise capital to fund that expansion.
Hong Kong is a popular listing destination given its proximity to mainland China at a time when Washington and Beijing have clashed over the audit transparency of Chinese companies, some of which have delisted in the US.
Chinese EV makers Xpeng Inc (小鵬汽車) and Nio Inc (蔚來汽車) have both forged secondary Hong Kong listings.
On Ireland’s blustery western seaboard, researchers are gleefully flying giant kites — not for fun, but in the hope of generating renewable electricity and sparking a “revolution” in wind energy. “We use a kite to capture the wind and a generator at the bottom of it that captures the power,” said Padraic Doherty of Kitepower, the Dutch firm behind the venture. At its test site in operation since September 2023 near the small town of Bangor Erris, the team transports the vast 60-square-meter kite from a hangar across the lunar-like bogland to a generator. The kite is then attached by a
Foxconn Technology Co (鴻準精密), a metal casing supplier owned by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), yesterday announced plans to invest US$1 billion in the US over the next decade as part of its business transformation strategy. The Apple Inc supplier said in a statement that its board approved the investment on Thursday, as part of a transformation strategy focused on precision mold development, smart manufacturing, robotics and advanced automation. The strategy would have a strong emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI), the company added. The company said it aims to build a flexible, intelligent production ecosystem to boost competitiveness and sustainability. Foxconn
Leading Taiwanese bicycle brands Giant Manufacturing Co (巨大機械) and Merida Industry Co (美利達工業) on Sunday said that they have adopted measures to mitigate the impact of the tariff policies of US President Donald Trump’s administration. The US announced at the beginning of this month that it would impose a 20 percent tariff on imported goods made in Taiwan, effective on Thursday last week. The tariff would be added to other pre-existing most-favored-nation duties and industry-specific trade remedy levy, which would bring the overall tariff on Taiwan-made bicycles to between 25.5 percent and 31 percent. However, Giant did not seem too perturbed by the
TARIFF CONCERNS: Semiconductor suppliers are tempering expectations for the traditionally strong third quarter, citing US tariff uncertainty and a stronger NT dollar Several Taiwanese semiconductor suppliers are taking a cautious view of the third quarter — typically a peak season for the industry — citing uncertainty over US tariffs and the stronger New Taiwan dollar. Smartphone chip designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科技) said that customers accelerated orders in the first half of the year to avoid potential tariffs threatened by US President Donald Trump’s administration. As a result, it anticipates weaker-than-usual peak-season demand in the third quarter. The US tariff plan, announced on April 2, initially proposed a 32 percent duty on Taiwanese goods. Its implementation was postponed by 90 days to July 9, then
RSS