Semiconductor materials group JX Advanced Metals rose on its first day of trading — in a test of investor appetite for chip-related stocks — after raising $3bn in Japan’s biggest IPO in almost seven years.
Shares traded up 2.8 per cent at ¥843 ($5.64) on their first day, edging above the ¥820 at which the initial public offering was priced, as investors bought up the stock exposed to artificial intelligence and computing trends despite its peers taking a bruising in recent weeks. The shares went untraded for a short time at the open in Tokyo due to a glut of buyer orders.
The offering provides a windfall for Eneos, which fully owned JX Advanced Metals and will still retain 42.4 per cent of shares, as Japan’s largest oil refiner attempts to shift towards low-carbon businesses and reduce its conglomerate discount.