Share sales in listed firms at record high of $4.4 billion this month

Companies and shareholders across Asia have been taking advantage of a market rebound since late March to sell shares

Two jumbo block trades in India this month have pushed follow-on offerings in the country to a record high. 

A $3.3-billion sell-down of GlaxoSmithKline’s stake in Unilever’s Indian unit, Hindustan Unilever, and a $1.1-billion placement of Bharti Airtel shares by its parent take May’s total follow-on offerings in the country to $4.4 billion, the most for a month on record, data compiled by Bloomberg shows. 

In addition to that, Reliance Industries, the largest company by market capitalisation, kicked off a $7-billion rights offer this month.