Freescale, the semiconductor spin-off from Motorola, has slashed its US initial public offering by $670m (€524m) to $1.7bn in the latest dramatic sign that the market for big flotations has stalled.

This week should have been a landmark for US flotations with twelve issues expected to raise a record $5.3bn. Instead the majority started life at a discount, others priced at the lowest end of their bookbuilding ranges and three have been postponed.