PICC Shares Up Sharply as HK Trading Begins

Shares in PICC Property and Casualty Co. Ltd., (formerly Peoples Insurance Company of China) the country’s largest property insurer, began on the Hong Kong stock exchange earlier today with a bang, rising 50 percent over their H.K.$1.80 (U.S.$0.23) opening price to close at H.K.$2.70 (U.S.$0.346).

PICC realized around U.S.$693 million from its initial public offering of the three billion plus shares it put on the market. Calculated at the closing value the company would be worth around U.S. $3.72 billion. The company’s shares were the most actively traded issue on the HK Exchange, accounting for around 23 percent of today’s volume.

One happy shareholder should by AIG, which theoretically saw its $245 million investment in a 9.9 percent stake in the company grow in value by $122.5 million.