A bankruptcy judge in New York has approved the auction sale of a Chrysler plant in northeast Ohio to a Canadian liquidator that sells surplus industrial equipment.

Maynards Industries Ltd. of Vancouver bid $45.5 million for the Twinsburg stamping plant southeast of Cleveland. Judge Arthur Gonzalez approved the deal Thursday.

About 1,000 people worked at the plant when Chrysler announced shutdown plans last year, but retirements and buyouts have trimmed the workforce. The plant is scheduled to close in June.

Microsoft unveils new MSN Web design

Microsoft is rolling out the new design for its MSN Web portal in the U.S.

The software maker is saying goodbye to MSN.com’s blue background and its blocks of text links. Instead, the site will be sporting more white space and fewer categories.

Microsoft Corp. hopes to get more Web surfers using its Bing search engine.

United Technologies cuts CEO compensation

United Technologies Corp. cut CEO Louis Chenevert’s compensation nearly 19 percent last year, according to a document it filed with federal regulators.

Chenevert’s compensation of $17.9 million in 2009 was down from $22 million. It included $1.4 million in salary, up nearly 9 percent from 2008.