(Yicai Global) April 8 -- The Shanghai Stock Exchange got listing applications from 50 firms within 10 working days since China's science and technology innovation board started fielding them from March 22 to April 4. 

These firms plan to raise CNY48.4 billion (USD7.2 billion), state media Securities Daily reported.

At 16, most of the applicants are in the computer, communications and other electronic equipment manufacturing, followed by 13 exclusive equipment makers and eight firms from software and information technology services.

Only one company is from each of chemical materials and products manufacturing, railway, shipping, aerospace and other transport device and general equipment production, research and experimental development, and the instrument and meter industry.

Shanghai boasts the most applicants at 10, while eight firms come from Beijing, Jiangsu and Guangdong provinces each, four hail from Zhejiang province, and Fujian, Hubei and Shandong provinces contribute two apiece. Tianjin, Hunan, Anhui, Sichuan, Heilongjiang and Shaanxi provinces all generated one.

Citic Securities and CSC Financial have sponsored seven and six and a half firms (CSC Financial serves as co-sponsor for one firm), respectively, ranking first and second, followed by China International Capital with five companies.

Of these applicants, 40 have chosen the first listing standards which require a prospective firm's estimated market value to be no lower than CNY1 billion and that it achieve positive net profit and have gained no less than CNY100 million (USD15 million) in operating revenues in the most recent year.

For these firms to opt for the first listing standards is entirely in line with market expectations, pundits say, because many of these contenders have met listing requirements on the main board, the small and medium enterprise board or the growth enterprise market, have been waiting for initial public offerings and have good performance in scale, asset, profitability and normativity and are up to the first listing standards. 

For firms to plump for the first listing standards will be the main trend in the near term.

Editor: Ben Armour