iPad 3 is coming in March

Apple Inc.’s next iPad, expected to go on sale in March, will sport a high-definition screen, run a faster processor and work with next-generation wireless networks, according to three people familiar with the product. The company’s manufacturing partners in Asia started ramping up production of the iPad 3 this month and plan to reach full volumes by February, said one of the people, who asked not to be named because the details aren’t public. The tablet will use a quad-core chip, an enhancement

Jan. 15, 2012

Greece faces acute danger without debt deal, EU loans

ATHENS (AFP) ― Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos on Friday said his country faced “acute economic dangers” without eurozone loans and the conclusion of debt write-down talks that were suspended earlier in the day.“We are fully aware of how critical the situation is,” Papademos told a dinner hosted by the Greek-German chamber of commerce.“Until the (debt write-down talks) are complete and the new loan agreement is voted, the country continues to face acute economic dangers,” he said.Papademos

Jan. 15, 2012

MS plans reorganization, job cuts

Microsoft Corp. is making plans for a companywide restructuring of its marketing operations, a move that may include hundreds of job cuts, according to people familiar with the matter. The plans haven’t been settled and could change, according to the people, who asked not to be named because the review isn’t public. Job cuts are unlikely to involve thousands of employees, the people said. Initial steps could be announced within the next 30 days, according to one person. The changes would elimina

Jan. 12, 2012

Japan plans to cut Iran oil imports: Azumi

China rejects limiting oil imports from the country despite U.S. pushU.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner’s efforts to tighten economic sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program won backing from Japan a day after China rejected limiting oil imports from the country. “We want to take concrete steps to reduce our share in an orderly way as soon as possible,” Finance Minister Jun Azumi said at a press conference in Tokyo Thursday after discussions with his U.S. counterpart. “The world canno

Jan. 12, 2012

Xbox workers threaten suicide in China labor tiff

BEIJING (AP) -- Dozens of workers assembling Xbox video game consoles climbed to a factory dormitory roof, and some threatened to jump to their deaths, in a dispute over job transfers that was defused but highlights growing labor unrest as China's economy slows.The dispute was set off after contract

Jan. 12, 2012

EU threatens legal action against Hungary

BRUSSELS (AP) ― The European Union stepped up the pressure Wednesday against Hungary, saying its fiscal policies were unsustainable and threatening legal action over a new constitution that some fear could push the country back into authoritarianism. The warnings escalated the standoff between Hungary’s government and the EU and underlined the difficulty Budapest will face in negotiating a desperately needed international rescue package from the EU and the International Monetary Fund. Hungary, w

Jan. 12, 2012

India lets Starbucks, Ikea open stores

India allowed foreign single-brand retailers to open stores in the world’s second-most populous nation, paving the way for Starbucks Corp. and Ikea to start outlets without local partners. The government Tuesday ratified a Nov. 24 cabinet decision to raise the ownership limit to 100 percent from 51 percent, Trade Minister Anand Sharma said in a statement. The companies will need to buy 30 percent of the value of products sold from domestic small and cottage industries, he said. The move undersco

Jan. 11, 2012

Geithner in Beijing, faces uphill struggle on Iran

BEIJING (AP) ― China and the United States have pledged during a visit by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to cooperate on boosting the global economic recovery, but Chinese backing for U.S. sanctions on Iran’s oil industry appeared unlikely.China buys almost one-third of Iran’s oil exports and has rejected the U.S. sanctions as a tool to rein in Tehran’s nuclear program. That sets Washington up for a public setback if the government of the world’s second-largest economy refuses to cooperate.

Jan. 11, 2012

EU sees NYSE-Deutsche Boerse tie-up as unacceptable: source

BRUSSELS (AFP) ― European regulators consider a merger between stock market operators Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext to be unacceptable, a source said Tuesday, as the European Commission approaches making a final decision next month.The services of Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia still have reservations and objections to a merger which would see Deutsche Boerse shareholders own 60 percent of the new combined, Netherlands-incorporated firm, a source familiar with the review told AFP o

Jan. 11, 2012

GM likely to recapture global auto sales lead

DETROIT (AP) ― General Motors Co. is on track to retake the title of world’s top-selling automaker, riding strong sales in the U.S. and China to beat Volkswagen and Toyota.GM, which lost the crown to Toyota in 2008 after holding it for more than seven decades, won’t release global sales numbers until later this month, but it’s on pace to finish 2011 at around 9 million cars and trucks, at least 800,000 more than its German and Japanese rivals.Winning the global sales crown doesn’t mean much to a

Jan. 10, 2012

Hungary’s IMF negotiator to start talks in Washington

BUDAPEST (AFP) ― Hungary was set to kick off crucial bailout talks with the International Monetary Fund on Monday in Washington, Hungarian officials said, despite recent policy disagreements.Hungarian negotiator Tamas Fellegi “already has talks today,” an economy ministry spokeswoman in Budapest, Zsofia Banhegyi, told AFP, adding he “will meet lots of people.”The discussions were due to last until Thursday, but details of the talks, including their timeline, were kept under wraps.“Offical inform

Jan. 10, 2012

Asia looks to keep Iranian oil flowing

BEIJING (AP) ― China, the biggest buyer of Iran’s oil, has publicly rejected U.S. sanctions aimed at Tehran’s energy industry while American allies Japan and South Korea are scrambling to find a compromise to keep critical supplies flowing. Beijing is buying less Iranian crude this month, but analysts say China is unlikely to support an oil embargo. Instead, they say, the smaller purchases might be a tactic aimed at obtaining lower prices as the West squeezes Tehran. The sanctions approved by Pr

Jan. 8, 2012

EU debt crisis specter re-emerges

Deep concerns over the eurozone debt crisis resurfaced with a vengeance Thursday, driving the euro to 16-month dollar lows as Italy and Spain came under intense pressure on the markets.The euro sank below $1.28 to levels last seen in September 2010 as Spain said it banks would need 50 billion euros, more than first expected, to cover bad loan losses while Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti rattled nerves with an unannounced visit to Brussels.Monti, who meets French President Nicolas Sarkozy on F

Jan. 6, 2012