TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS

U.S. to Ease Curbs on Fast Computers: The Commerce Department announced steps toward removing export controls on some high-speed computers to help technology firms expand to a potential billion-dollar overseas market. The move covers digital computers with capabilities of up to 67 million MTOPS, or theoretical operations per second, now used in the United States by businesses and in advanced personal computers, the department said. Curbs now affect exports of computers above 12.5 MTOPS. But the industry said the action is far short of what is needed to make U.S. computer firms competitive globally. The move is part of a gradual relaxation of curbs on military-use high technology that were imposed on communist countries after World War II.