Listings in US in doubt despite solid Weibo debut

Charles Chao, chief executive officer and chairman of the board ofSina Corp, the parent company of Weibo, said the timing for the IPO "wasn't ideal". But he added that it's the long-tern return, not the opening price, that matters most to investors.

Top 10 Chinese Internet firms eyeing IPOs in US

Strong IPO lineup on US bourses

During a briefing for reporters ahead of Weibo's IPO on Thursday, Chao said that setting the price for any IPO is based on market conditions.

"The overall IPO market in the US is rather soft. We are happy that we can still set Weibo's IPO price at the bottom of our initial target range," he said.

Weibo is not the only company that's had to lower its target for an IPO in the US.

Leju Holdings Ltd, China's leading online-to-offline real estate service provider, which started trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, also set its IPO price at the bottom of its original target range and cut the size of the issue.

"Many of the Chinese stocks that listed in the US last year were oversubscribed, and their share prices continued to rise after their IPOs. But the IPOs of the two Chinese companies [that listed on Thursday] showed that demand in the capital market in the US is inadequate," said Ricky Zhong, founder of imeigu.com, an online platform that offers information about US-listed Chinese companies.

Zhong said in a blog post on Friday that US investors are quite "sensitive" over Chinese stocks right now. "With most of the investors waiting for 'super IPOs' from Alibaba and JD.com, it will be difficult for other, smaller Chinese companies to achieve good performances for their upcoming IPOs," he wrote.

The shares of Tarena International Inc and IKang Healthcare Group Inc, which were listed in the US earlier this year, have dropped below their offering prices.

Alibaba confirms IPO in US	Alibaba investing in US messaging startup Tango