Shares in internet search engine Google soared in a hectic launch on New York's Nasdaq market this afternoon.
This marked a spectacular comeback after the company had sharply reduced to $85 the price at which the shares would start trading, following a string of problems.
Google, making the biggest Internet float since the 1990s technology bubble, opened at just over $100 and later moved up to $103. Within an hour, more than 12 million shares had changed hands.
Google had slashed the expected pricing of its shares to between $85 and $95 a share, down from a previous range of $108 to $135 per share. It had also cut the number of shares offered to 19.6 million from 25.7 million. Some fund managers had said the initial price range meant the shares were too expensive.
Google also disclosed yesterday that the US Securities and Exchange Commission had requested additional information about a recent Playboy magazine article featuring an interview with Google's founders.
It was the latest hiccup for the unusual auction-based IPO. Google had also disclosed that its general counsel received a notice that the SEC staff intended to recommend that the commission pursue civil penalties against him. Further, the SEC has started an informal inquiry into Google's offer to buy back 23.2 million shares it may have issued illegally.
