Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, Keat Chhon (C) rings a bell during the opening ceremony at the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX), in Phnom Penh April 18, 2012. After a string of false starts, Cambodia's stock market finally started trading on Wednesday, marking a significant step forward for an impoverished country blighted by corruption and scarred by decades of civil war. REUTERS/Stringer (CAMBODIA - Tags: BUSINESS)Published: 19-Apr-12
PHNOM PENH (Cambodia Herald) - Cambodia's first securities issue, an offering of shares in Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority, has attracted considerable interest among foreign investors, market sources said.
Svay Hay, director of Acleda Securities Plc, a unit of Acleda Bank Plc which was transfer agent for the issue, said foreigners accounted for around a third of the subscription in the primary market. He said these investors were mainly from China, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and Europe.
Foreigners may be attracted to the Cambodian market because of its openness, he said. Under local market rules, only 20 percent of shares issued have to be allocated to domestic investors with foreigners allowed to take up to 80 percent.
Once source, who asked not to be named, said foreigners bought at least 50 percent of the shares that changed hands Wednesday, the first day of trading at the Cambodia Securities Exchange with turnover of 8.2 billion riel.
Ghanty Sam, a finance professor, said Cambodia needed more local investors to promote market stability, noting that foreigners can quickly withdraw their funds from Cambodia.
"It's better that we have more Cambodian investors who are long-term investors," he said, adding that local awareness of the market needed to be raised to attract domestic interest.
Underwritten by South Korea's Tong Yang Securities Cambodia) Plc, the Phnom Penh Water issue was equivalent to 15 percent of the utility's capital. The remaining 85 percent is held by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
No comments:
Post a Comment