CCB shares up after US lender raises stake

Shares in China Construction Bank (CCB) were up in Hong Kong and Shanghai on Wednesday following Bank of America’s (BOA) announcement that it would increase its holding in the lender, state media reported. CCB shares rose 2.55% on the mainland, while the bank’s Hong Kong-listed shares were up 0.75%. BOA announced Tuesday that it would buy an additional 6 billion shares of CCB at a 63.6% discount to raise its stake from 8.2% to 10.75%. The US lender is exercising part of an option to buy as much as 19.9% of CCB, under an agreement reached during its  strategic investment in the bank in 2005. CCB’s shares have risen more 180% since it went public later the same year.