AB InBev pulls Budweiser listing, cancelling year’s largest IPO

HONG KONG/NEW YORK/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Anheuser-Busch InBev said on Friday it will not proceed with the planned listing in Hong Kong of its Asia Pacific unit, Budweiser Brewing Company APAC Ltd , in what would have been the world's biggest initial public offering (IPO) of 2019.

AB InBev, the world's largest brewer, was aiming to sell as much as $9.8 billion in Budweiser stock to seek relief from its heavy debt burden. AB InBev shares ended trading in New York down 3%, as investors saw that prospect slipping away.

The cancelled IPO is also a setback to the Hong Kong stock exchange, which hoped Budweiser's listing would help attract other high-profile international companies at a time of increased trade tensions between the United States and China.