IN a stellar year for initial public offerings, four of the top IPOs in Australia in 2004 had a Western Australian connection.
The best performing IPO was Perth-based Tomahawk Energy, which raised $2.5 million to invest in oil and gas exploration in the US.
Its 20-cent shares were trading at $1.35 at the end of November.
Other top IPOs included Bluestone Tin, Hibernia Gold and Elixir Petroleum, according to accounting firm Deloitte.
In total, 2004 is set to break all records with an expected 176 IPOs, up from 102 in 2003.
This includes a record monthly number of 40 IPOs scheduled for completion this month.
Funds raised through IPOs are set to reach $10.4 billion in 2004, an increase of 13 per cent on the 2003 figure.
Deloitte corporate finance partner Tom Henderson told WA Business News more than 70 per cent of all IPOs that listed in 2004 were trading at or above their issue price at the end of November.
Western Australia again produced the largest number of IPOs, up from 42 in 2003 to 58 in 2004. The average value of floats in WA increased from $6.9 million to almost $10 million in 2004.
