COMPANIES

Houston-based oil ang gas giant ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) has been fined $257 million to settle charges brought by the Chinese government following a massive oil spill. The company's Chinese venture partner, CNOOC Ltd., was also fined, to the tune of $76 million.

Global chip sales rose about 1.3 percent to $23.3 billion, a slight increase from February but down nearly 8 percent from last year, the Semiconductor Industry Association reported.

Honda Motor Company Limited (NYSE: HMC) said Tuesday that U.S. sales last month fell 2.2 percent because of three fewer selling days than in April 2011, but on a selling-day adjusted basis sales actually jumped 10 percent on strong demand for Accord and Civic hybrids.

Hyundai Motor Company (KS: 005380) enjoyed its second-best U.S. month in the company's history during April, despite three fewer selling days than in 2011, rising 1 percent on high demand for fuel efficient cars.

BlackBerry mobile device maker Research In Motion kicked off its annual conference by giving out thousands of prototype smartphones running its brand new operating system, BlackBerry 10.

Your flight can't get any cuter than this. EVA Air, a Taiwanese airline has launched new jets inspired by Hello Kitty. Two EVA Air aircrafts adorned with the fictional Japanese cartoon character will be put into service starting May 23.

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), the world's biggest software company, announced it'll invest $300 million into a new business with Barnes & Noble (NYSE: BKS) to burnish the future of the Nook.

On the same day a federal judge blocked Texas from removing Planned Parenthood from a state program for advocating abortion services, an appeals judge allowed the state to move forward.

General Motors Company (NYSE: GM), the world's largest car company, reported an 8.2 percent drop in April sales on declining fleet sales and fewer selling days compared to the year before.

Volkswagen AG (VOWG) reported U.S. sales growth of 38 percent in April, the best sales figures for the month in over 40 years.

Cristal Paulette Richardson, a 28-year-old Dallas woman is facing murder charges after a disturbing and deadly encounter at a motel Saturday night.

New DNA testing has proven the innocence of Colorado man Robert Dewey, who was wrongfully convicted for raping and killing Jacie Taylor in 1994. Dewey is expected to be released Tuesday after spending the last two decades behind bars.

Many believe Apple will finally use its recently licensed patents for liquid metal in its sixth-generation iPhone, presumably called the iPhone 5. In response to these rumors, French designer Antoine Brieux conjured up several artist renderings of what the liquid metal iPhone could look like. Check out pictures of Brieux's iPhone 5 liquid metal LM concept here.

Shares of chip designer Integrated Device Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: IDTI) plunged as much as 15 percent after it announced it would acquire PLX Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: PLXT) for $330 million.

Chesapeake Energy Corp will find an independent, non-executive chairman to replace Aubrey McClendon, who will retain his position as chief executive officer, the natural gas producer said on Tuesday.

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) sales dropped 5 percent in April, despite sales growth for its Explorer, F-series trucks, Fusion and Edge vehicles, the company reported Tuesday.

Bank of America Corp., the second-largest U.S. bank by assets, will dismiss about 2,000 employees, many of whom earn high salaries, in its investment banking, commercial banking and non-U.S. wealth-management units, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Diamond Pet Foods, a Missouri-based pet food manufacturer, has issued a recall and suspended production on its dog and puppy dry food because of possible salmonella contamination. The latest recall comes from the same plant that produced mold-contaminated food when dozens of dogs were killed nationwide in 2005. According to a statement from the company, which is under Schell and Kampeter, Inc., the recall includes the Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul Adult Light Formula dry dog food and ...

Woodside Petroleum Limited (AX: WPL) sold a 14.7 percent stake in its Browse liquid natural gas (LNG) development project for $2 billion to a Japanese joint venture operated by Mitsui & Company Limited and Mitsubishi Corporation, the Australian company announced Tuesday.

Natalie Wood, the Hollywood princess who mysteriously disappeared off a yacht in 1981 is making headlines again. This time the headlines are due to her daughter, Courtney Wagner, who she had with actor Robert Wagner. Courtney Wagner was arrested this week for coke and heroin possession.

Samsung Electronics (NYSE: SSNLF) reclaimed the No. 1 rank in mobile phone shipments overall and in the smartphone sector, market researcher IDC reported.

BP Plc (BP.L) reported a bigger-than-expected profit drop on the back of a fall in production prompted by the need to sell oil fields to pay for the Gulf of Mexico disaster, raising concerns about the oil group's turnaround plan.

The worldwide smartphone market grew by 42.5 percent year-over-year in Q1 2012, with South Korean technology giant Samsung overtaking Cupertino-based Apple for the smartphone leadership position.

A sex hungry 47-year-old is terrorizing the city of Munich. The German nymphomaniac has already struck terror in a man who she forced to have repeated sexual encounters with. Now, the sex fiend has left her second victim sobbing in the street.

Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC), the largest provider of security software, is likely to confirm prior guidance for lower-than-expected fourth-quarter results on Wednesday.

Microsoft is all set to invest $300 million in Barnes & Noble's e-reader and tablet business, foraying into the race for digital publishing and online education.

What is the ideal time to buy Apple products like the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Mac? While considering this question, many people tend to believe that Apple doesn't drop prices of its products except they are superseded.

The latest report from Good Technology shows that iOS devices are becoming stronger in the business world while the Android devices are still lagging far behind. The report reveals that the first quarter of the current year was dominated by the iPhone 4S, which hit a record high, claiming the number one device spot overall and accounted for 37 percent of Good's activations, followed by the iPad 2 with 17.7 percent. The new iPad, in first one and half months of its launch, has also made quite ...

Google Inc and its board were sued on Monday by a shareholder who wants to block the company's stock split plan because it entrenches the Web search company's co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, according to court documents.