•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   

Hong Kong. Shares in the Macau operation of Las Vegas Sands tumbled more than 13 percent in the first day of Hong Kong trade on Monday, after raising $2.5 billion in an IPO to help restart its languishing gambling projects.

Shares of Sands China were off 13.3 percent at 9 Hong Kong dollars after trading as low as 8.78 Hong Kong dollars ($1.16). The stock had been sold at 10.38 Hong Kong dollars, near the low end of its marketed price range.

The US casino giant originally sought to raise more than $3.3 billion by selling shares in its casino businesses in Macau, the world’s largest gambling market.

Much of its IPO proceeds will go toward paying back Las Vegas Sands’ massive debts. About $500 million will be used to resume work on multibillion dollar projects Sands temporarily abandoned last year because of a funding squeeze.

Sands chairman Sheldon Adelson dismissed worries about the stock’s initial performance.

“We’re not in business for 10 minutes, we’re in business for decades,” he said at Hong Kong’s stock exchange shortly after the stock tanked.

Analysts said Monday’s tepid debut was partly the result of the high price Sands was valuing its Macau operation.

Concerns about growth and saturation in the city’s casino market, as well as waning interest in new offerings after a string of recent IPOs, including one from Sands rival Wynn Resorts, weighed.

New casino openings in Macau’s Cotai area, where Sands operates its colossal Venetian resort and is planning its other projects, “will drag down the profitability of all casinos there significantly,” Credit Suisse analyst Gabriel Chan said. He expected the company’s stock to lag the broader market. “This presents a great challenge to Sands China, given its already tight balance sheet,” he said.

The casino industry in Macau, the one place in China were gambling is legal, enjoyed years of dizzying growth before last year’s slowdown. It has rebounded this year thanks partly to China’s quick recovery from the global economic downturn.

Associated Press