Capital One Financial Corp., one of the nation’s largest credit-card issuers, reported a second-quarter loss of $275.5 million as the amount of uncollectible debt grew. But the McLean-based company, a major local employer, noted that delinquencies slowed in the quarter. The company, which also owns banks, lost 65 cents per share in the quarter compared with a profit of $452.9 million, or $1.21 per share, in the same quarter a year ago.

Cigarette maker Philip Morris International said Thursday its second-quarter profit fell 9 percent as the stronger dollar shrunk profit earned in other currencies. Still, it raised its 2009 profit estimate.

Philip Morris International Inc., maker of Marlboro and other cigarettes for sale overseas, has agreed to buy a Swedish company’s South African snuff and pipe-tobacco operations for roughly $222 million. Philip Morris International estimated that Swedish Match South Africa Ltd.‘s products account for about 31 percent of total tobacco consumption in South Africa. The brands involved in the deal, announced yesterday, include Boxer, Best Blend and Taxi.