Twitter shares jump 73% in market debut

Shares in the micro-blogging site Twitter closed at $44.90, up more than

73% from their initial price of $26 each.

That means after its first day as a public company, Twitter is now valued at a
little over $31bn (£19bn).

More than 13 million shares were traded once they became available an hour
after the New York Stock Exchange opened.

It is the biggest technology listing since Facebook in 2012.

Twitter floated on the NYSE and not, as some initially expected, the
technology-rich Nasdaq exchange, where the likes of Facebook are listed.

It was a big win for the NYSE, which decorated its exterior with banners
promoting the offering on Thursday.

Twitter has more than 230 million users, but is yet to make a profit.

Many had expected Twitter to choose the technology-heavy NASDAQ exchange for
its floatation
Head of the NYSE Duncan Niederauer oversees the action

Rollercoaster ride
Shares in newly-listed companies are often volatile on their first day of trading.

Within minutes, Twitter's stock price soared more than 80% before closing just
below its initial opening price of $45.10 per share.
When Facebook launched on Nasdaq, its shares were priced initially at $38
each. The stock soared within hours of its debut to a high of $45. But its price
later slumped.

It only recovered those losses by 11 September 2013, when shares again

touched $45.

Its initial public offering (IPO) was also marred by technological glitches and
delays.

To prevent Twitter's stock sale from having a similar fate, the NYSE ran tests
on 26 October using larger-than-normal share volumes.

Financial scrutiny
Twitter is selling 70 million shares, which will raise more than $1.82bn.

The company, which invites users to send tweets in 140 characters or less,
has 232 million active users. According to its IPO documents, these users
send 500 million tweets a day.

Twitter's financials have been under greater scrutiny since it announced its
plan to float, especially given that the company is still loss-making.

It lost $69m in the first six months of 2013, on revenues of $254m. About 85%
of revenues come from advertising on its site, and more than 75% of Twitter
users access the site from their mobile phone.

Mary Jo White, head of US regulator the Securities and Exchange

Commission, recently warned investors to be cautious of the metrics used by
technology companies like Twitter, noting that investors have become
overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of data.

"In the absence of a clear description, it can be hard not to think that these big
numbers will inevitably translate into big profits for the company," she said in a
speech.

"But the connection may not necessarily be there."