HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Bank of China Ltd.'s /quotes/comstock/28c!e:601988 (CN:601988 3.58, -0.03, -0.83%) /quotes/comstock/22h!e:3988 (HK:3988 4.10, -0.02, -0.49%) /quotes/comstock/11i!bachy (BACHY 13.22, +0.22, +1.69%) shares ended the Thursday morning session lower in Hong Kong, following a published report that the bank wants to issue additional shares on the city's stock exchange and is soliciting regulatory approval and backing from shareholders for the sale. Xiao Gang, chairman of the bank, told a news conference in Beijing on Thursday the deal could see share issuance equal to 20% of its existing share capital, according to a Reuters report. The share sale would supplement the bank's current plans for a convertible bond issue of up to 40 billion yuan ($5.86 billion), the report said. Shares of Bank of China, the nation's fourth-largest lender by assets, were down 2% at the midday break in Hong Kong on Thursday.
