Biz bits

Foreclosures rise 7 percent

WASHINGTON --- The number of U.S. households on the verge of losing their homes rose 7 percent from June to July, as the escalating foreclosure crisis continued to outpace government efforts to limit the damage.

Foreclosure filings were up 32 percent from the same month last year, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday. More than 360,000 households, or one in every 355 homes, received a foreclosure-related notice, such as a notice of default or trustee's sale. That's the highest monthly level since the foreclosure-listing firm began publishing the data more than four years ago.

Banks repossessed more than 87,000 homes in July, up from about 79,000 homes a month earlier.

Nevada had the nation's highest foreclosure rate for the 31st straight month, followed by California, Arizona, Florida and Utah. Rounding out the top 10 were Idaho, Georgia, Illinois, Colorado and Oregon.

Paulson fund snaps up Bank of America shares

NEW YORK --- The hedge fund run by John Paulson, who foresaw the distress in subprime mortgages and reaped billions by betting against the related securities, has bought about 168 million shares of Bank of America Corp., according to a regulatory filing Wednesday.

That makes Paulson & Co. the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank's fourth-largest shareholder, according to data from investor Web site LionShares. State Street Global Advisors is bank's top holder, with about 357.2 million shares, and Barclays Global Investors NA and Vanguard Group each own more than 200 million shares of the bank.

Fed optimism boosts Citigroup 8 percent

NEW YORK --- Shares of Citigroup Inc. rose nearly 8 percent Wednesday, outpacing gains among other financial stocks, amid a brighter outlook on the economy from the Federal Reserve.

Shares rose 29 cents, or 7.9 percent, to close regular trading at $3.98 -- the stock's highest close in three months.

The rise in Citigroup shares and other financial stocks helped lead the stock market higher Wednesday after the Fed said the economy appears to be "leveling out." Previously, the Fed said the economy's decline was slowing.