GEELY Automobile Holdings Ltd. has decided to withdraw its application for a proposed yuan share issue on Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style STAR Market, citing the “company’s business decisions and strategic adjustments,” according to a Hong Kong stock exchange filing Friday. The decision not to proceed with the listing won’t have a material adverse impact on the financial position or operation of the group, the Hong Kong-listed automaker said. Geely will “actively promote” a yuan share issuance “when relevant conditions are met,” according to the filing, which didn’t provide further details. Geely’s plans to list on the STAR Market were in doubt as early as March, when the stock market regulator questioned whether the company was high tech enough for the bourse. Geely originally received the listing approval in September, believing that a debut on the STAR Market would offer a higher valuation than a second listing on the main board on the Shanghai or Shenzhen stock exchange. Typically, it takes companies less than three months from the time they received exchange sign-off to the time they get the green light from the China Securities Regulatory Commission to complete the registration process. In a separate filing, Geely said its electric vehicle arm Zeekr Intelligent Technology Holding Ltd. will explore “different external financing options.” Geely plans to use Zeekr to take on domestic and foreign tech giants like Apple Inc. and Xiaomi Corp., which also have ambitions to enter the burgeoning electric vehicle market. In China, Geely and traditional automakers like Volkswagen AG are jockeying with Tesla Inc., Nio and Xpeng for a slice of what is now the world’s largest electric vehicle market. (SD-Agencies) | 