Trading of stocks and exchange-traded-funds on the American Stock Exchange was halted for nearly two and a half hours Thursday afternoon due to a technical problem. The halt, which began around 9:30 a.m. PDT and ended at noon, was caused by a problem with a communication system at Amex that is being converted to a new system, the exchange said.

SONY CORP.

Sony Corp. (SNE) Chairman Howard Stringer promised to shift the struggling electronics giant from recovery to growth and to make the PlayStation 3 a profit driver despite its bungled rollout. But investors at the company’s annual shareholder meeting in Tokyo remained skeptical of an imminent turnaround, pressing for a clear strategy on how he intended to recoup losses.