PING AN STOCK FALLS AMID MARKET TURMOIL, DILUTION CONCERNS

Stock in Ping An fell by the maximum 10% yesterday and today on the Shanghai exchange amid concerns that the hoped-for $22bn equity-raising and bond-issue exercise would dilute current stockholders’ interests, many of whom would be unable or unwilling to increase their investments in the Chinese insurer by such a significant amount. The fall was compounded by a global “mini-crash” which by the end of trading today had seen the Shanghai Composite fall by 17% in just six trading days. By mid-morning local time, Ping An had lost $10.3bn in market value since its announcement of a planned share sale, turning what had been a plan to raise as much as 160bn yuan into one where the amount raised might be less than 140bn yuan. Ping An said that the final price of the equity offering would be no lower than the average closing price of Ping An’s Shanghai ‘H’-listed shares on the 20 days prior to the listing document’s publication or on the day immediately prior.