Hong Kong, May 20 (AP) Shares in CATL, the world's largest maker of batteries for electric vehicles, jumped about 13 per cent Tuesday in its Hong Kong trading debut after it raised about USD 4.6 billion in the world's largest initial public offering this year.

The solid reception for Chinese company, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., in Hong Kong suggests there is still an appetite among international investors for leading Chinese manufacturers despite trade tensions between Beijing and Washington.

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It sold more than 135 million shares at their maximum offer price, 263 Hong Kong dollars (USD 33.6) each. Its shares rose after they started trading at 296 Hong Kong dollars (USD 37.80), 12.5 per cent higher than their offer price. They were up about 13 per cent by midday.

CATL also has shares listed in Shenzhen, a business hub neighbouring Hong Kong. They initially fell but then edged 0.1 per cent higher on Tuesday.

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CATL held a nearly 38 per cent global market share for EV batteries in 2024, its listing documents showed. It supplies automakers like Tesla, Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Ford, Toyota and Honda.

The company has faced pressure from the US. In January, the US Defence Department added it to a list of companies it says have ties to China's military, an accusation that CATL denied. It called the inclusion a “mistake.”

In April, John Moolenaar, chairperson of the US House Select Committee on China, wrote to the CEOs of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America to demand that the two American banks withdraw from their work on CATL's IPO. But the two banks stayed on.

In the US, Ford Motor Co. is licensing technology from CATL to build batteries, but the plan faces resistance from some Republican lawmakers, who have expressed concern that the Chinese company could benefit from US tax dollars.

The share offering excluded onshore US investors, though many large US institutional investors have offshore accounts that allow them to participate.

The company said it plans to use most of the net proceeds from the IPO to build its factory in Hungary, meant to bring it closer to the manufacturing facilities of its main European customers.

CATL recorded a profit of 55.3 yuan (USD 7.6 billion) in 2024, up 16.8 per cent from 2023. Its listing surpassed JX Advanced Metals' USD 2.9 billion IPO in Japan in March, which was previously the largest this year, according to Renaissance Capital, a provider of pre-IPO research and IPO-focused ETFs. (AP)

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