"Xinhua Finance, the fast-growing Chinese financial information company, has been actively pursuing a plan to become the first Chinese company to list in Tokyo, with Nomura Securities as its lead underwriter.

However, the decision to acquire Mergent may signal a preference for a US listing. Fredy Bush, chief executive of Xinhua Finance, said: "There is an underwriter in the US that is making a compelling case for going to Nasdaq."

If the company - which bought AFX News' Asian operations 18 months ago and US-based Market News International for undisclosed amounts - does launch its initial public offering in New York, it would represent a blow for the Tokyo Stock Exchange, which has been lobbying hard to secure its first Chinese listing.

Mergent, which was spun off from Moody's Investors Service, the ratings company, in 1998 will add crucial database technology and information to Xinhua Finance's existing ratings work.

Xinhua Finance will try to develop a dividend product for China based on Mergent's popular "dividend achievers" reports that track which US companies are the best dividend providers."