The chairman of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing has warned that escalating US-China trade tensions are casting a “dark cloud” over global markets, a worry borne out in the lacklustre debut of China Tower, the world’s largest flotation in two years.

On Wednesday shares in China Tower, the largest telecoms tower group by revenue globally, failed to pop on its debut, opening at HK$1.26 on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. This was only in line with the group’s initial public offering price. By the afternoon, the price had hardly moved.

There were signs of lessening interest in China Tower last week when it priced its IPO at the bottom of the range, raising US$6.9bn. Nonetheless, its listing was the largest since Postal Savings Bank of China, which raised $7.4bn in September 2016.