The US government has issued a recall of 35,000 Sony Corp notebook computer batteries, calling them a fire hazard to consumers.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission said the recall affects Sony lithium-ion batteries that were used mainly in computers from Hewlett-Packard Co, with a smaller number in notebooks from Dell Inc and Toshiba Corp.

There have been 19 reports of the batteries overheating, including 17 reports of fire, the CPSC said, with two people experiencing minor burns.

Sony spokeswoman Elizabeth Boukis would not speculate on the cost of the recall.

The company will support the US recall, along with that of an additional 65,000 batteries worldwide.

On a global basis, PC makers have reported 40 overheating incidents, Sony said.

The recall affects around 32,000 HP notebooks, 3000 from Toshiba, and 150 Dell computers.

HP could not be immediately reached for comment.

Sony blamed the faulty batteries on manufacturing line adjustments in 2004 and 2005, which it believes may have affected the quality of some cells. Other incidents of overheating may have involved a problem with raw materials, the company said.

Boukis said batteries covered by the new recall are unrelated to those in company's massive 2006 recall.

That action covered 9.6 million batteries and cost the company millions.

In addition, last month the consumer electronics giant recalled 438,000 of its Vaio laptops due to battery overheating concerns.