Shares in 'Baby Shark' studio jump on market debut

Shares in the South Korean studio behind the ultra-catchy "Baby Shark" -- YouTube's most-viewed video -- surged as much as 60 percent on Tuesday as the company made its market debut in Seoul.

Beloved by young children, "Baby Shark Dance" has racked up more than 16 billion views on YouTube, roughly double the second-place clip "Despacito".

It was posted on the platform nearly a decade ago by The Pinkfong Company, which owns a portfolio of children's animation and educational franchises.

In morning trade, the company's shares were up around 17 percent from their offering price of 38,000 won ($26), having earlier soared over 60 percent.

"Baby Shark", in which a shark family is introduced one by one to a chirpy tune, is a global megahit and has featured as a Macy's parade balloon in New York.

The Pinkfong Company was founded in 2010 and most of its income comes from selling content online and for live shows.

Analysts said the surge in share price was normal for an initial public offering (IPO).

"In theory, newly listed stocks are supposed to rise by around 30 to 40 percent on their first day of trading," Choi Jong-kyung at Heungkuk Securities told AFP.

"The level of gain (for The Pinkfong Company) is, textbook-wise, a very natural phenomenon."

The Pinkfong Company posted revenue of 97.4 billion won last year, up 11 percent, and operating profit of 18.8 billion won, nearly quadruple the previous year.

Last month, CEO Kim Min-seok said the firm has "a structure that generates profit from the content itself".

"We recoup production costs through our own channels like YouTube and apps, which lowers our dependence on external distributors and reduces variable-cost burdens," Kim told South Korea's Edaily.

South Korea is a global popular culture powerhouse, home to K-pop band BTS and the origin of recent Netflix TV hits such as "Squid Game" and "KPop Demon Hunters".