British Airways swung to a first-half pretax loss of 292 million pounds, as business class passenger numbers continued to tumble, dashing hopes air traffic demand was recovering from the slump caused by the downturn.

Fitch Ratings said Thursday it may cut its ratings on Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway on concerns about the effect its planned acquisition of Burlington Northern Santa Fe will have on its asset profile and capitalization.

The old Chrysler was famous for its aggressive marketing and auto-show stunts, like running a cattle drive down the streets of Detroit to publicize a new pickup. But for its coming-out party on Wednesday, the new Chrysler stuck to a far more serious and subdued script, says the New York Times.

Honda Motor aims to improve its cost structure to be able to break even in Japan using just 70 percent of its capacity to build cars, a top official at Japan's second-biggest automaker said on Wednesday.

Bitterness, anger and disbelief mixed with betrayal and even resignation are just some of the emotions boiling within Germany following Tuesday's shocking news that General Motors will scrap its sale of Opel.

Toyota Motor said on Wednesday it was pulling out of Formula One racing.

General Motors posted its first monthly sales increase in nearly two years as a rebound in industrywide U.S. auto sales in October pointed toward a gradual recovery for the battered sector. 

General Motors reversed course by abandoning a long-expected sale of its Opel to a group led by Canadian auto supplier Magna and opting to keep the European unit after a year of uncertainty and high-stakes political negotiations. 

General Motors reported an increase in auto sales last month while rival Ford Motor saw sales decline, as market watchers look for an industry-wide increase from September's levels, which were hurt by a Cash for Clunkers hangover.

People scared of flying can now press a button on their iPhone to help them deal with their panic.

Germany's BMW gave a tepid markets outlook and predicted the euro would stay strong after third-quarter earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) shrank 86 percent amid a global economic slump.

Ford Motor will pay back in part and extend by two years $10.7 billion of secured debt and issue some $3 billion of stock and equity linked securities to improve its balance sheet.

Toyota Motor expects industry-wide U.S. light vehicle sales to range between 10.3 million and 10.4 million units on an annualized basis in 2009, and top 11 million in 2010, the automaker's U.S. brand chief told Reuters on Monday.

New Zealand's national carrier Air New Zealand will buy 14 new Airbus planes at a cost of around US$1 billion to replace its domestic fleet of Boeings, the airline said on Tuesday.

The United Auto Workers union had given local unions until Monday to complete voting. But a person briefed on the voting said Saturday that the contract changes have been rejected by large margins.