Evraz delays IPO of North American unit

The biggest steel maker in Russia, Evraz, has shelved plans for an initial public offering (IPO) of its North American unit, due to the drop in the price of oil.

It had planned to raise up to $500m by selling a stake of between 25% to 30% in Evraz North America Ltd., Bloomberg reported, citing three people with direct knowledge of the plans.

However, the business, which makes pipes for producers of natural oil and gas, is expected to take a hit from the decline in crude prices.

On 31 October a Canadian affiliate sold $350m in bonds offering a yield of 7.5%. That was less than the $500m targeted, leading to worries at Evraz the unit might not fetch the full IPO valuation it had been hoping for.

As of 10:43 the stock was down 3.74% to 126p.