WASHINGTON - A labour group Apple Inc. joined to assess working conditions at three manufacturing plants in China, where its products are made, says conditions are improving. But employees are still working more hours than the country's legal limit. The Fair Labor Association said Thursday that Apple's largest supplier, Foxconn, has made all recommended improvements to working conditions that were due by the end of December.

By Reiji Murai TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese display maker Sharp Corp, a supplier to Apple Inc, will aim to boost sales to the iPhone maker's chief rival Samsung Electronics Co under a three-year rehabilitation roadmap to secure its survival. The business plan, due for release on Tuesday, will lean further on banks that last year saved it from failure, as a 200 billion yen ($2 billion) convertible bond will fall due in September, three sources familiar with the plan told Reuters late last week.

(Reuters) - Memory drive maker Fusion-io Inc <FIO.N> said founders David Flynn, the chief executive, and Rick White, chief marketing officer, have resigned to set up another venture, sending the company's shares down more than 25 percent in early trading. Director Shane Robison will succeed Flynn, effective immediately.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has claimed that more powerful and versatile tablets are taking over where PCs left off and that iPad owners wish their devices had keyboards so that they could create documents and use Microsoft's software.