AIM's success in attracting high numbers of IPOs during 2006 helped to grow its average number of listed companies by more than 300, according to a recent survey.

The junior market also raised £14.3 million, which was more than all global growth markets combined.

The results of the survey have been published by accountancy Grant Thornton, which analysed the merits of 41 stock markets competing to list growth company stocks.

The research found that beyond AIM, competition for listings is only provided by a small cluster of markets. But these are gathering more momentum compared to previous years.

In terms of attracting new listings during 2006, AIM proved to be far superior to the other global growth markets, according to Grant Thornton's Global Growth Markets Guide 2007.

Attracting 462 new admissions - more than a quarter of which were from overseas - AIM was able to raise in excess of £14.2 billion (in primary and secondary issues), also increasing its overall market cap by 80% to £69 billion.

In terms of growth in the average number of listed entities, AIM's performance was unmatched by any other growth market.

In terms of fundraising, AIM was again the clear leader raising more money than all other markets combined. Its performance was followed by NASDAQ at $17 billion (£8.4 billion) and TSX-V at $7.1 billion (£3.5 billion), both of which accounted for 26% and 12% respectively.