Business News

Federal mediators have scheduled talks between Lockheed Martin Corp. and union members who have been striking the defense contractor's Marietta plant since March 11.

Three former Martinsburg residents accused of defrauding Georgia investors out of a total of $10 million used a similar scheme in the Eastern Panhandle and in Maryland, the Martinsburg Journal reported Wednesday.

Best Buy Co. Inc., helped by strong sales of digital products and entertainment software as well as expense controls, reported that fourth-quarter profits surged 84 percent, beating Wall Street projections by a penny.

Hyundai Motor Co. has picked Alabama as the site for its first auto manufacturing plant in the United States, the company's president said Tuesday.

IBM Corp., Sony Corp., Sony Computer Entertainment and Toshiba Corp. have agreed to jointly develop technologies for making advanced computer chips expected to be used in future electronics products.

The International Monetary Fund is pushing forward with a proposal to create the equivalent of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy process for individual countries in an effort to limit the damage from future international debt crises.

Ford Motor Co. will end production of the luxury Lincoln Blackwood pickup truck in December, but officials for the automaker said a limited production run was planned from the start.

Less than four years ago, Washington state's attorney general helped win billions of dollars from the tobacco industry for 46 states -- money she saw as a bonanza for smoking-prevention programs and other health measures.

Coca-Cola is reportedly developing a vanilla-flavored version of its best-selling flagship cola, extending the company's palette of flavorings from Cherry Coke and Diet Coke with lemon.

Construction spending posted its biggest increase in a year in February as builders took advantage of Americans' demand for new homes.