HK and mainland markets to see strong new listings in 2015: Deloitte

Hong Kong's stock market is forecast to raise 180 to 220 billion HK dollars (23 to 28 billion U.S. dollars) from about 110 IPOs next year, backed by a large pool of candidates seeking to be listed, according to a report by Deloitte China.

Seven to eight large-scale initial public offerings (IPO), mainly from financial institutions and pharmaceutical companies, are expected among Hong Kong's IPO activities, said the report.

The financial institutions include small and medium-sized banks, insurance companies, and brokerages that serve clients across the border, Deloitte said, adding that Internet financing and interest rate liberalization are spurring the new listings.

Hong Kong's IPO market performed well in 2014 and is expected to be the world's second-largest IPO venue for the second consecutive year.

Deloitte expects the A-share market on the Chinese mainland to have about 180 to 200 new listings and raise 100 to 120 billion yuan (16 to 19 billion U.S. dollars) in 2015, given the regulator's plan to moderately increase IPO activities.

Small and medium IPOs from companies in the manufacturing, technology and consumer business sectors will play a crucial role in the market.

As for this year, Deloitte said though more companies completed their IPOs in the second half, the total number of IPOs and IPO funds raised in the year was still far behind those in 2012.