The owners of German chemical company Evonik are set to scrap plans for what could have been Europe’s biggest initial public offering in more than a year, four people familiar with the matter said.

A string of share flotations across the globe have been blown off course by the volatility of financial markets in recent months, arising from fears the euro zone debt crisis will drag down economic growth.

The sources said the RAG Foundation was likely to cancel the Evonik IPO today, which would be the second time it has pulled plans for a flotation.

Talks with the banks leading the IPO preparations, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs, have shown that commitments from investors to buy shares are insufficient and that there is no clarity on price and volume, the sources added. – (Reuters)