Drug-maker Chi-Med still aims to list in HK

Biotech company Hutchison China MediTech, backed by CK Hutchison (0001), is planning to list in Hong Kong as soon as next year, but it first needs to prove commercialization success by making its cancer drugs profitable, says chief executive Christian Hogg.

The cancer drug-maker, which is 46.79 percent owned by CK Hutchison, is already listed on Nasdaq in the United States and the London Stock Exchange.

Chi-Med postponed its Hong Kong initial public offering in June last year over market uncertainties amid the social protests in the city, two months after it submitted the IPO application. Chi-Med was planning to raise up to US$500 million (HK$3.9 billion) at that time.

Hogg said public sale in Hong Kong is only a matter of time as Chi-Med is headquartered in the city, with major business in mainland China. Chi-Med's two cancer drugs have submitted new-drug applications in China, expecting to launch them at year-end and next year.

The company said its first-half net loss extended by 9.47 percent to US$49.7 million and revenue grew 4.5 percent to HK$106.8 million. Hogg projects Chi-Med will make a profit as soon as 2024.

Jacobio Pharmaceuticals, a Chinese cancer drug-maker, is mulling a Hong Kong IPO as soon as this year, to raise as much as US$400 million, Bloomberg reported.

Meanwhile, TAL Education, a mainland online education provider listed on the New York Stock Exchange, said it doesn't have a plan for a secondary listing in Hong Kong. Mainland media had said it was weighing a Hong Kong IPO that could raise up to US$2 billion.

Leader Education (1449), a mainland private higher education service provider, saw shares almost flat in gray markets last night.

Shares of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (0388) rose 2.44 percent to record HK$386 yesterday, boosted by IPO news of mainland companies.