Crowd control measures have been set up at Apple stores, as staff say walk-ins will not be entertained this year
Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, a unit of state-owned energy giant Qatar Petroleum, will conduct a QR3.2 billion ($880 million) initial public offering of its shares in the local market next month, officials said on Sunday.
It would be the first IPO since 2010 in Qatar’s stock market, after the global financial crisis froze issuance.
Authorities want to revive IPOs as a way to develop Qatar, the world’s top exporter of liquefied natural gas, into a regional financial hub.
“We encourage citizens to take part in this investment and also to await other opportunities in the pipeline,” Energy and Industry Minister Mohammed Saleh Al Sada told a news conference.
Qatar plans to conduct IPOs worth QR50 billion in its stock market over the next 10 years, he said. The country has a population of about 2.1 million, roughly 250,000 of whom are local citizens.
The Mesaieed Petrochemical offer, open only to Qatari citizens, will be conducted between December 31 and January 21. Trading in the shares is expected to start in February, Finance Minister Ali Shareef Al Emadi said.
The offer price of the shares will be QR10 each, plus listing costs of QR0.2 per share; the IPO will comprise about 26 per cent of the company.
The offer is likely to attract solid demand, considering the strong performance of the Qatar market, said Marwan Shurrab, a fund manager and head of trading at Vision Investments, a regional company.
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