China Mobile eyes $6 billion Shanghai listing after flagging NYSE exit

(Reuters) - China Mobile has approved plans for a potential HK$47.08 billion ($6.06 billion) listing in Shanghai, weeks after the telecom firm said it would be delisted by the New York Stock Exchange in line with U.S. investment restrictions dating to 2020.

The mainland's largest wireless carrier said on Monday it plans to sell no more than 964.8 million shares, or 4.5% of its total issued shares, publicly on the Shanghai Stock Exchange at an undisclosed price.

Shares of the company closed at HK$48.8 on Monday.

China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom said earlier this month they expect the NYSE to notify regulators of their delistings after an unsuccessful appeal by the companies to revert the move.

The delistings stem from a Trump-era decision to restrict investment in Chinese technology firms, which has been left unchanged by the Biden administration amid continuing tensions between Washington and Beijing.

In March, China Telecom announced its plans to raise roughly $4.1 billion by selling up to 12.09 billion shares on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

China Mobile said it aims to use the proceeds from the offering to develop its premium 5G networks and infrastructure for cloud resources, among others.

It may also expand its offering by 15% by exercising an over-allotment "greenshoe" option, it said in a statement.

($1 = 7.7670 Hong Kong dollars)

(Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)