If I was working in China, I would take the opportunity and use up five days of my annual leave - September 30 along with October 8-11 - to get a 16-day vacation and go on a long leisure trip.

But since we are are still keen on stocks, let's talk about something interesting. Hong Kong's IPO market is recovering.

The retail tranche of International Housewares Retail Company (1373), the operator of Japan Home Centre chain, was over-subscribed.

Now a Shanghai-based provider of funeral services is getting set to list in the SAR. Fu Shou Yuan operates in eight large mainland cities.

Apart from providing funeral services, it also sells cemetery space at huge profit margins. The US-based private equity giant Carlyle Group is one of its major shareholders.

Dr Check is not sure whether Fu Shou Yuan will spark a continuing revival of the local IPO market. Its peers have rallied recently.

They include the Sino-Life (8296), which offers funeral services in the mainland and Taiwan, AnXianYuan China (0922), which provides services in Shanghai, and Midas International (1172), which sells cemetery space in China. Dr Check and/or The Standard bear no responsibility for any decision made based on this column.