Chinese Car Exporter Chery Automobile Files For Hong Kong IPO

The company was the only passenger vehicle maker among the global top 20 to achieve over 30% sales growth for traditional and new energy cars in the nine months to last September

Chery Automobile Co. Ltd. filed for a Hong Kong IPO on Friday, becoming one of China's last remaining major automakers to list in a deal that is expected to be one of the largest listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange this year.

Based in Eastern China's Anhui province, Chery is hoping to entice investors with its recent turbocharged growth. The company has also led China's charge to becoming the world's biggest car exporter, winning the title for most overseas sales among independent Chinese car brands for the last 22 years, according to market data in its listing document.

The deal's main sponsors include leading Chinese investment bank CICC, along with domestic peers Huatai and GF Capital.

Chery's sales rose 51.8% in the first nine months of last year to 1.54 million units, making it China's second largest independent car brand and the world's 11^th largest, according to its listing document. The company manufactures both traditional internal combustion and new energy vehicles under the Chery, Jetour, Exeed, iCAR and Luxeed brands.

Chery's revenue grew by an even faster 67.7% year-on-year to 182 billion yuan ($25 billion) in the first nine months of last year, while its net profit rose 58.5% to 11.3 billion yuan.

The company is also expanding its overseas manufacturing footprint. It currently assembles vehicles in Malaysia, and is building new joint venture facilities in Vietnam and Thailand. Chery said it will use funds from the IPO for the overseas expansion, as well as for developing new models, including next-generation vehicles with advanced technology, and to upgrade its production lines in its home city of Wuhu.

Founded in 1997, Chery is one of China's major automakers and one of its earliest car exporters. It entered the Middle East as early as 2001 and reached a modest milestone when it exported more than 1,000 units in 2004.