Tuesday, February 2, 2010

A bad sign? "China Broker’s I.P.O. Aims for $2.4 Billion This Week"

Figures that a mid-tier firm would miss the top.
From the NYT's DealBook blog:

Huatai Securities, the mid-sized Chinese brokerage, will launch an initial public offering in Shanghai this week that could raise 16.5 billion yuan ($2.4 billion) in China’s largest offering this year, braving a mainland market straining under heavy new share offerings and tightening liquidity, Reuters reported.

China’s brokerages are gearing up to take advantage of financial reforms, including the imminent launch of margin trade and short selling, that will boost their business, improve liquidity and nudge Shanghai toward its goal of becoming a global financial center within a decade.

But the I.P.O. comes as the market is sagging under the weight of heavy share supplies, fed by authorities who have approved a steady stream of new share issues to keep the market cool and avert asset price bubbles, the news service said....LINK to original story.

From The Pragmatic Capitalist:

The most basic definition of a bull or bear market is the market’s position when compared to the 200 day moving average. Most chartists consider a market above the 200 day moving average to be in a bull market and a market below the 200 day moving average to be in a bear market. China’s Shanghai Index recently broke below the 200 day and appears to be following classic post bubble price action – a bursting bubble followed by a relief rally based on false hope which is ultimately followed by years of sideways or negative market action (think Japan circa 1995 or Nasdaq circa 2005). Without getting too technical and simply using this very basic definition the Shanghai index has now officially entered bear market territory.

SSEC IS THIS THE BEGINNING OF A NEW BEAR MARKET IN CHINA?