More companies are looking at IPOs on the Oslo Stock Exchange, some of which could be completed later this year.
Oyvind Amundsen, chief executive of the Oslo Bors, told TradeWinds that shipping companies active in tankers, gas and dry bulk are all considering listing on the stock exchange.
“We don’t have a crystal ball so we can’t foresee the future, but what we see now is that the market in shipping is quite good. It is one of the more active sectors that we have at the moment, even though there’s of course less activity in the IPO market now than two years ago, due to the little bit of uncertainty we have in Europe with the war in Ukraine and interest rates, inflation and so on,” he told TradeWinds on Monday.
“We see that shipping is one of the sectors in which it is possible to raise funds, especially during the first quarter of this year, and a lot of the already listed companies did subsequent issues and raised funds for their businesses.
“One of the three IPOs [in Oslo] this year has been a shipping company and we believe that after the summer if the market conditions are there, there will be several more [shipping IPOs].”
Several different shipping companies from Europe, Asia and elsewhere have expressed interest in listing in Oslo. The firms, which Amundsen did not name, are active in crude tankers, gas and dry bulk.
“We will see what will land, but we see that the trend has changed quite rapidly from different sectors within shipping, but we see that tankers within crude oil and gas have been quite active in the last year,” he said.
Amundsen said the support of the Oslo shipping cluster is vital to the stock exchange’s success.
“We all work together, we are companions and we have made this a very efficient and good market together,” he said.
“We have the shipowners, we have the investors, we have the advisors, we have the suppliers and the service companies and then we have the law firms. I would say the stock exchange is in the middle.”
Shipping is well understood by investors in Norway, which makes it relatively easy for shipping companies to raise money on the Oslo Bors, “even when the market is closed for financing”, he said.
‘Cyclic business’
“As we know, it’s a very volatile and very cyclic business. The people, the industry, and the market players in Norway know that and are comfortable with the shipping sector and work together with it and use it in an efficient way.
“It’s normally easy — if you have a good case, of course — to raise the funds that you need in Norway, even though other places globally can be closed for financing. We’re quite proud of that.”
Nor-Shipping 2023 kicked off on Monday morning with a bell-ringing ceremony at the Oslo Stock Exchange.
Shipping executive and former banker Kristin Holth rang the bell, accompanied by representatives from companies listed in the Norwegian capital.
