SEATTLE — Taiwanese cell phone maker HTC Corp. is filing a patent complaint against Apple Inc. over its popular gadgets, escalating a legal dispute as new smart phones are threatening the iPhone's supremacy.

HTC, which makes the Droid Incredible and other phones running competing Android software from Google Inc., filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission yesterday seeking to block U.S. sales of the iPhone, iPod and iPad devices.

Apple filed its own lawsuits against HTC in March, saying HTC's cell phones violate 20 of Apple's iPhone patents. Apple's complaints were made before the trade commission and in U.S. District Court in Wilmington, Del.

None of the complaints is likely to block sales of any products any time soon. Patent disputes are common among technology companies and often take years to resolve. The cases often lead to licensing agreements rather than outright bans on imports, as HTC is seeking in its complaint. Apple's products are typically made overseas.

EU SEEKS RULES TO STEM DEBT CRISIS

BRUSSELS — European Union officials urged a crackdown on widespread government overspending, calling yesterday for much closer economic coordination between EU nations to curb the acute debt crisis that has threatened to sink their shared currency.

The plan by the EU's executive commission advocated unprecedented scrutiny of countries' spending plans even before they go to their national parliaments — and new financial penalties for rulebreakers.

That would deepen the ties that bind 16 nations in Europe's currency union and would curtail some nations' power over their own economies in an attempt to keep more reckless spenders like recently bailed-out Greece from dumping their debts on all eurozone members.

MACY'S PROFITABLE IN 1ST QUARTER

NEW YORK — Macy's intense focus on tailoring its merchandise to local markets helped push the department store chain to profitability in the first quarter.

Customers who had defected to rivals returned to its stores, the chain said, helping to drive better-than-expected sales.

However, the department store operator, which boosted its annual outlook last month, said it's too early to further raise its guidance for the year because of economic uncertainty.

ANOTHER NEW HIGH FOR GOLD PRICES

NEW YORK — The price of gold reached a record high yesterday as investors uneasy about the euro put their money and their trust into the metal.

Gold for June delivery jumped as high as $1,249.20 an ounce, nearly $22 above the previous record of $1,227.50 set Dec. 3. It later settled at $1,243.10, up $22.80 from Tuesday's close.

The gold rally is a sign that investors aren't completely convinced that weak European countries will be able to control their rising debts through cost-cutting.