CCB waits for nod on mega sale

China Construction Bank could raise $7.5 billion through a share sale in Shanghai. Xu Jinbai

China Construction Bank, the nation's second-largest bank, may sell shares in Shanghai as early as this month, raising about $7.5 billion in what would be the world's second-biggest stock sale this year.

The listing committee of China's securities regulator will meet on Friday to review the Beijing-based bank's plan to sell as many as 9billion shares, according to the watchdog's website. China Construction Bank's shares rose to a record in Hong Kong yesterday on optimism the sale will allow it to accelerate expansion in China, the world's fastest-growing major economy. The sale is likely to receive approval because the government wants to boost the supply of equities on the mainland's two exchanges.

"The government is opening the gate for a new wave of sizeable IPOs with which they are trying to divert some liquidity from the market," said Gu Zhonghan, a bank analyst at E Fund Management Co, which oversees the equivalent of $18 billion. "China Construction Bank will be favored by investors."