Global investors pocketed a healthy 27 per cent returns on their investment in initial public offerings floated during the calendar year 2006. The average returns of the issues were on the closing prices of January 5 over their offer prices.

Bloomberg data show 1,419 companies mobilised $238.40 billion last year, which is currently valued at $302.89 billion.

India ranked 18th in the global returns chart, with 65 companies having posted an average gain of 33.64 per cent. Indonesia, with fewer floats of which 12 averaged 128.6 per cent returns, topped the global chart.

Of the 65 countries studied in-house, public floats are currently trading at a premium in 56 countries, while in the rest (nine countries) IPOs are trading at a discount.

Again, India grabbed the third position among countries with public floats of over $4.5 billion each. China emerged No. 1 in the list of big issues with a robust 58.3 per cent returns, followed by Hong Kong at the second slot with an impressive 39.5 per cent returns.

The US, which topped the fund mobilisation chart, was placed at No. 4 with a decent 29.7 per cent returns, followed by Germany at the fifth position with 28.7 per cent returns.

Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Italy, Thailand, Taiwan and UAE disappointed their investors, ending up on the losers' side in the global IPO returns chart. While Taiwan earned a hefty 49 per cent negative returns, Ukraine lost 12.4 per cent and Thailand 10.1 per cent.

The public floats of 1,419 companies were spread across 61 industries.

They included banking, construction, engineering, insurance, metals, media, realty, investment trusts, pharmaceuticals, services, software and telecom, among them.

Returns were over 50 per cent each in sectors such as forest products & paper, software, environmental control, apparel, engineering & construction, machinery, mining and biotechnology.

Tempting returns were realised by home builders (44.5 per cent), banks (43.3 per cent), cosmetics/personal care (38.5 per cent), and real estate and healthcare services (37.4 per cent each).

Semiconductors, advertising, house wares and food service generated negative returns of over 10 per cent, while internet, commercial services, steel, aviation and telecom underperformed with 10-20 per cent returns.

Of the total 1,419 IPOs, 903 are currently trading above their offer prices, 21 are stable at their offer prices and the remaining 494 are disappointing for their investors with current prices below their offer prices.

While the average of these (903) currently positive returns-yielding floats is 41.4 per cent, the market values of 494 are currently down 14 per cent.

Of all IPOs, 158 fared extremely well returning an appreciation of over 100 per cent each, while 341 are trading above an average return of 27 per cent.