(Yicai) June 19 -- The number of companies from the Chinese mainland pursuing to list shares offshore has jumped this year amid tightening domestic regulations on initial public offerings.

Some 34 Chinese mainland firms have gone public on offshore markets this year as of yesterday, up more than 40 percent from a year earlier, according to stock tracking app Straight Flush. Youji Holdings and 22 other firms have listed in Hong Kong and the rest in New York.

Wuhan-based toluene derivatives supplier Youji completed its HKD100.7 million (USD12.9 million) IPO yesterday, making it the fifth company from the Chinese mainland to go public in Hong Kong this month. Its shares [HKG: 2881] surged 6.7 percent to HKD7.49 (96 US cents) apiece as of 11.30 a.m. today and soared 27.6 percent yesterday.

More Chinese mainland companies are expected to follow suit. Some 81 firms have had their offshore IPO filings approved this year, with 36 to be listed in Hong Kong and the rest in New York, according to the website of the China Securities Regulatory Commission. APT Electronics, Sinosynergy, and several other firms have turned to such listings after withdrawing applications from the Chinese mainland.

China's cabinet issued new regulations in April to strengthen supervision of the capital market, proposing to raise the listing thresholds of the main and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's tech-heavy board and expand the coverage of on-site inspections on companies under review and related intermediaries. As a result, nearly 230 firms withdrew their IPO applications from the Chinese mainland this year.

The Chinese mainland stock markets saw a decade-record-low 41 new IPOs this year so far, down over 70 percent from a year earlier. They raised CNY29.5 billion (USD4.1 billion), down over 80 percent.

With tightening IPO regulations in the Chinese mainland, offshore listings have become a new choice for companies withdrawing their mainland IPO applications, an investment banker noted. Despite the not-high threshold for offshore listings, there are difficulties in the underwriting and distribution process, so their listings are uncertain, the person added.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Martin Kadiev