XN000022-1996-07-03 — Page 46

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Profit forecasts of listed companies

Following is a question by the Hon Sin Chung-kai and a written reply by the acting Secretary for Financial Services, Mrs Lessie Wei, in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):

Question:

As the performance results recently announced by two newly listed companies have failed to meet the profit forecasts as stated in the respective prospectuses, will the Government inform this Council if it is aware of:

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

how many of the newly listed companies providing profit forecasts in their prospectuses in the past three years have announced performance results in the first year after listing which are below the profit forecasts as stated in their prospectuses, please provide a list of these companies together with a breakdown of the difference between the actual and the forecast profits of each of the companies concerned;

in regard to the companies mentioned in the answer to the second part of (a) above, whether such companies and their guarantors have been penalised; if so, what the details are; if not, why not;

the average time taken by the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong to investigate into cases of inaccurate profit forecasts by newly listed companies; whether the investigation results of each of these cases will be made known to the public by the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong; if so, how the results will be publicised; if not, why not; and

whether, given that newly listed companies are not required to state their profit forecasts in their prospectuses under the existing rules governing the listing of securities, the authorities concerned will consider prohibiting newly listed companies to state their profit forecasts; if not, why not?