CITIC Pacific is interested in floating shares on the Chinese mainland, where the securities regulator is considering setting up an international board on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

"Once regulations permit, an A-share listing is something CITIC Pacific would be interested in. However there is no related regulation in force now," company spokeswoman Elisa Fong said in an e-mail yesterday.

Shanghai Securities News yesterday quoted sources familiar with the issue as saying CITIC Pacific has hired CITIC Securities Co as the sponsor and underwriter to help it list on the A-share market.

Fong said she can't comment on the underwriter issue at this stage. CITIC Pacific is already listed in Hong Kong.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission said in July that an international board would be set up on the Shanghai bourse to allow overseas firms to trade in the domestic market for the first time. Government officials have indicated that the board is expected to be launched next year.

Steel-to-property conglomerate CITIC Pacific is one of several overseas incorporated firms that plan to list on the A-share market along with HSBC Holdings Plc, CNOOC Ltd and China Mobile.

China Mobile said earlier that it has begun preparing for its domestic IPO and is looking forward to getting regulatory approval in the near future.

HSBC Holdings also said it wants to list but has not decided the size of the offering and that the timing is subject to regulatory approval.

Two years ago, China began work on the board as a means of enhancing the status of the Shanghai exchange. The program has proceeded slowly amid local investor concerns about a potential stock glut that would adversely affect share prices.

(Shanghai Daily September 17, 2009)