LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Struggling entertainment site MySpace said Tuesday that it is cutting nearly half of its staff worldwide, or about 500 people, after an extensive revamp in October overhauled its look and allowed it to be run with fewer people. The cuts, part of a two-stage layoff plan, better position the site for a possible sale or spin-off by parent News Corp.Mike Jones, the chief executive o

DETROIT (AP) ― The sunny yellow Ford C-Max minivan that greets visitors at this year’s Detroit auto show says it all. After taking a pounding during the recession, the U.S. auto industry is full of optimism, and a strong mix of new products will greet buyers as they return to dealerships.“Looking around at what’s at the show, we’ve never been happier,” said Mike Jackson, the CEO of AutoNation Inc.

Kia Motors Corp.’s sedans proved once again to be the most popular among Samsung Group’s executives this year.Among the 318 newly appointed executives, 78.6 percent picked Kia’s K7 and Opirus as their company cars. They joined the executive ranks for the first time in the latest reshuffle on Dec. 8.The Opirus held sway with nearly half, with 155 choosing the model. It maintained its status as the

CES dominated by new models of 3-D televisions, tablet PCs and upgraded smartphonesLAS VEGAS ― The world’s largest technology tradeshow bore witness to several major technology trends that can be summed up as: 3-D vision and “smart” devices.Top electronics firms showcased upgraded 3-D televisions that promised to become more comfortable living room features by becoming bigger, yet thinner, and mor

LG Electronics said Tuesday it would seek to consolidate its status as one of the world’s largest home appliance makers by 2014 by taking advantage of “smart” technology.The firm said in a statement it would target double-digit sales growth from its home appliance business this year and was aiming for sales of $20 billion from the sector in 2014.“This year will be the beginning of a new era of hom

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Intel Corp. is paying $1.5 billion to end a fight it started with Nvidia Corp. over a key computer technology.The legal battle centered Nvidia’s ability to make “chipsets” that are compatible with Intel’s latest processors ― a fight that has implications for many of the world’s computer users, since Intel and Nvidia’s chips are ubiquitous.Nvidia is a top maker of graphics chip

Portuguese bond yields hit record highs as fear of spreading debt contagion risesLISBON (AP) ― Borrowing rates for Portugal briefly spiked after reports over the weekend that Germany and France are pushing it to accept outside help to keep the debt crisis in Europe from spreading.The yield on Portuguese 10-year bonds, a key gauge of investor sentiment, rose to 7.18 percent at one point on Monday,

GM Daewoo Auto and Technology Co. aims to export more than 1.8 million vehicles and knockdown kits under the Chevrolet brand this year, its president Mike Arcamone said Monday.The Korean unit of GM will also launch eight new vehicles to Korea, instead of the originally planned seven, this year. Four of the eight models will be those in segments the company does not currently compete in, he added.H

Top Korean carmaker confident of raising U.S. market share to 5 percentHyundai Motor Co. will focus on boosting quality and brand image as it steps up its challenge for global automobile leadership, vice chairman Chung Eui-sun said Monday. “Hyundai’s biggest challenge is to secure competitiveness in terms of quality in order to improve the brand image,” Chung said at the North American Internation