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CHICAGO-Equity Office Properties Trust's board of directors has upped the company's share repurchase program by $500 million, which would increase the limit to $1.6 billion. The largest US office REIT can buy up $160 million worth of stock before it hits the current $1.1-billion limit.

So far this year, Equity Office Properties Trust has reacquired 11.3 million shares for $347.1 million. Equity Office Properties shares were trading at $28.55 Monday morning, down from about $34 three months ago and $29.50 last week.

Meanwhile, the REIT has been a net seller of real estate, reducing its office portfolio by 13 million sf, generating $2.7 billion in sales against $1.3 billion in acquisitions. Conditions should continue to favor sellers, president and chief executive officer Richard D. Kincaid suggests in a recent earnings conference call, as an abundance of capital continues chasing class A office assets.