Google’s AI wager falters at IPO debut
Investors’ wealth surged ₹8.48 trillion in four days of market rally where the BSE benchmark has climbed nearly 2% amid firm global trends.
The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 114.49 points or 0.16 % to settle at 73,852.94 on Wednesday. During the day, it jumped 383.16 points or 0.51% to 74,121.61.
In the last four days, the BSE benchmark climbed 1,363.95 points or 1.88%.
The market capitalization of BSE-listed companies jumped by ₹8,48,328.9 crore to ₹4,01,37,377.21 crore ($4.84 trillion) in four days.
“Markets continued its upward momentum backed by positive global cues and investors covering their positions ahead of Thursday’s monthly F&O expiry,” Prashanth Tapse, senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities Ltd, said. “There is still a lot of uncertainty about tensions in West Asia, as there are worries any escalation in conflict could fuel a rise in crude prices, buoy inflation and further delay rate cut hopes.”
From the Sensex basket, JSW Steel, Tata Steel, Power Grid, Kotak Mahindra Bank, UltraTech Cement, NTPC, Bajaj Finance and Axis Bank were the major gainers. feedback@livemint.com
Mobvoi Inc., a Chinese artificial intelligence developer backed by Alphabet Inc.’s Google, finished its first day of trading lower in Hong Kong, marking the third stock debut to flop in the city this week.
The shares ended 3.2% lower even after they were sold near the low end of the indicated price range for its initial public offering.
The company and its shareholders raised HK$321 million ($41 million), much lower than $200 million to $300 million it was said to be targeting last year.
The slide also contrasted with gains in Hong Kong and Asian stocks markets Wednesjust day.
Known for its Ticwatch smartwatches and Chumenwenwen voice-activated search services, Beijing-based Mobvoi was founded in 2012 by a group of former Google employees.
It drew Alphabet’s backing
three years later, marking the US tech giant’s first direct investment in China since withdrawing its search engine from the country in 2010.
The disappointing debut adds pressure to Hong Kong’s ailing equity capital market, which saw IPO proceeds decline last year to the lowest level in over two decades amid concerns on China’s economic growth. On Tuesday, bubble-tea maker Sichuan Baicha Baidao Industrial Co. fell 27% in its first session, following the largest IPO in the city since November.
Mobvoi’s stock slumped as much as 22% early in the session,
The poor debut adds pressure to Hong Kong’s ailing equity market, which saw IPO proceeds decline last year
recovering most of the losses to end below the IPO price at HK$3.68. The shares were sold at HK$3.80 apiece, compared with its marketed range of HK$3.70–$4.10. Bankers were trying to price the IPO above Mobvoi’s last private round valuation of about $757 million, according to analyst Andrei Zakharov.
“Management expects to record a decrease in revenue, gross profit and gross profit margin for AI enterprise solutions’ business segment in 2024,” Zakharov wrote in a recent note on Smartkarma, setting a price target of HK$2.70 per share for Mobvoi. feedback@livemint.com
China has greenlit a US listing by autonomous driving startup Pony.ai, raising the potential for an increase in Chinese tech initial public offerings in New York after a more than two-year hiatus. Pony.ai plans to sell up to 98 million shares and list on the Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange, according to an announcement on the China Securities Regulatory Commission’s website published late Tuesday.
The Chinese securities regulator said Friday it would support overseas listings of tech firms. Chinese IPOs in the US slowed dramatically after Beijing cracked down on listings and the tech industry in 2021 following controversy over a US share sale by Didi Global Inc. Founded in 2016, Pony.ai