Chinese search engine giant Baidu Inc. won approval from the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited for a second listing in the city, said the company on Wednesday.

The proposal passed the HKEX hearing, according to the stock exchange, moving a step closer to the listing.

The Nasdaq-listed company followed many U.S.-listed Chinese companies' steps by embracing the "homecoming" listing in the Asian financial hub amid the trade war, though it has not yet encountered any targeted restrictions from the U.S.

Baidu is reportedly seeking to raise up to $3.5 billion through the listing in Hong Kong as soon as this month.

Baidu has been focused on transitioning from an internet company to an AI company, focusing on cloud service and autonomous driving platform Baidu Apollo.

In January, it announced it was teaming up with auto manufacturer Geely to establish a company that produces intelligent electric vehicles, showing its ambitions in entering the car manufacturing sector.

Baidu's share price has once surged over 50 percent in the first two months of this year. On Tuesday, Baidu saw a 13.58 percent increase in its stock to $264.48 per share.