BofA Drops Most in S&P 500 on Status of China Construction

Bank of America Corp. led decliners in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index after China Construction Bank Corp. said the U.S. lender will keep at least half its stake, spurring new debate on the American firm’s capital plans.

Bank of America slipped 55 cents, or 7.9 percent, to $6.42 at 4:15 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, the lowest since March 2009. The lender, the biggest in the U.S., agreed to retain at least half its 10 percent holding, China Construction President Zhang Jianguo told reporters in Hong Kong. Some analysts, including Charles Peabody of Portales Partners LLC, had estimated the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank would divest all of its shares.