After having opened at 4.79 yuan in Shanghai, compared with its offer price of 4.53 yuan, shares of the telecom giant pared some gains later and struggled to stay above the offer price amid weakness in broader market. The blue-chip CSI300 index lost more than 1%. U.S.-blacklisted China Telecom, which was kicked off the U.S. stock exchange in May, had raised 47.1 billion yuan ($7.3 billion) in Shanghai as it broadened its funding channel at home. 

The debut follows a growing number of U.S.-listed Chinese companies that are selling shares publicly in Hong Kong or mainland China amid Sino-U.S. tensions. Meanwhile, Hong Kong-listed shares of the company slumped more than 5% on Friday morning, trading at roughly half the price of its Shanghai counterparts.